ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what assessment the Electoral Commission has made of the profile of the electors who were not data matched on (a) national Government databases and (b) local government databases for purposes of individual electoral registration.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that its report on the dry run of the confirmation process, through which electors will be matched against the Department for Work and Pensions database, provides a full analysis of the socio-demographic factors associated with low match rates. The report can be found at:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/163144/Confirmation-Dry-run-2013-Results-report.pdf
	The commission also informs me that it was not possible to conduct a similar analysis on the results of local data matching as not all local authorities reported on their activities.

Electoral Register: Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what assessment the Electoral Commission has made of the merits of auto enrolment of young people at the time they are given their national insurance number.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it will carefully consider with the Cabinet Office any proposals such as this for improving the efficiency of electoral registration processes as it monitors the implementation of individual electoral registration during 2014 and 2015. If such proposals appear to be viable, the commission will recommend that the Government bring forward any necessary measures to allow them to take place once the transition to individual electoral registration is complete.

Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014

Pete Wishart: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2014, Official Report, column 418W, on the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014, when the Electoral Commission will have finalised its guidance on the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014; and how many charities (a) have been and (b) will be consulted in the compilation of that guidance.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that since Royal Assent of the Act, it has published a series of regular updates that explain how the new rules will work and how they may affect campaigners. These campaigner updates are available on the Commission’s website and Members of Parliament can also sign up to receive them at:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/political-parties-campaigning-and-donations/non-party-campaign-spending-and-donations-at-elections/sign-up-for-updates
	The Commission has held four roundtable discussions across the UK, and used an online survey to listen carefully to the needs of campaigners and explain its plans for the guidance. There were 82 responses from charities to the survey and 24 charities attended the Commission’s roundtable events. Electoral Commission officials have also spoken at events hosted by charity sector umbrella bodies.
	The Commission will publish its full guidance on the new rules in the summer, ensuring that campaigners have guidance available to them in advance of the regulated period. Campaigners are also able to approach the Commission for bespoke advice as usual and will continue to be able to do this when the new legislation comes into force on 19 September 2014.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Electoral Register: Young People

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland with reference to the answer from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Constitutional and Political Reform of 11 October 2011, Official Report, column 344W, on electoral register: standards, what assessment she has made of the effects of the visits of electoral registration officers in Northern Ireland to schools with 10 or more pupils between the ages of 16 and 17 on electoral registration for that age group in Northern Ireland.

Andrew Robathan: Concerns about under-representation of attainers were raised following the introduction of individual registration in Northern Ireland in 2002. The registration of attainers improved significantly with the introduction of the Chief Electoral Officer’s Schools Initiative. The Electoral Commission’s 2012 report on continuous electoral registration in Northern Ireland estimated that 66% of attainers were registered.
	Although the number of attainers registered in December 2013 fell to 9,945 from 11,477 in December 2012, the Electoral Commission’s recent report on the electoral registration canvass suggests that this can be partially explained by the fact that the Electoral Office did not conduct any activity with schools to register attainers in autumn 2013 due to canvass activity. The Electoral Office will commence school visits in September 2014 for the academic year 2014-15 and will also take applications from those pupils not visited last year.

Foreign Investment in UK

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent estimate she has made of foreign direct investment in Northern Ireland.

Theresa Villiers: Northern Ireland remains one of the most successful regions in the UK for attracting foreign direct investment, attracting some 6% of inward FDI with around 3% of the UK population.
	The Northern Ireland Investment Conference, which the Prime Minister and I attended, held last year is continuing to bear fruit and I welcome the recent announcement that Convergys—with whose senior management the Prime Minister took time at the Conference to discuss the benefits of Northern Ireland as a cost-effective investment location—is setting up a customer service centre in Londonderry in collaboration with its client EE.
	This investment will bring 333 jobs to the city over the coming year and generate over £5 million to the local economy annually.
	The recent announcements from Concentrix of its intention to reinvest in Northern Ireland and add a further 1,043 jobs to its existing work force of 800, and from EY (which also attended the Investment Conference) of a further investment leading to 486 more jobs, are welcome votes of confidence that Northern Ireland is an excellent place to invest and to grow a business.
	These two investments will inject some £38 million in salaries into the Northern Ireland economy.
	It is particularly heartening that so many companies choose to reinvest after they have established a presence in Northern Ireland and seen for themselves the benefits it can offer as a cost-competitive business environment together with its high quality and well educated work force.
	The G8 summit, which the PM brought to County Fermanagh in June 2013, also highlighted to the world the benefits of Northern Ireland as a place to visit and invest.

Giro d'Italia

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what contribution her Department made towards the cost of the staging of the Giro d’Italia in Northern Ireland.

Theresa Villiers: Sport is a devolved matter, so there is no provision for the Northern Ireland Office to contribute to the funding of the Grande Partenza of the Giro d’Italia.
	The Giro d’Italia is supported by the Northern Ireland Tourist Board and part-funded by the European regional development fund under the European Sustainable Competitiveness Programme for Northern Ireland.
	My officials have, at the request of the Department for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, engaged with the Home Office and several of our embassies over the past fortnight, to help facilitate the granting of visas to some of the elite riders and help deal with queries that they have raised.

Public Inquiries

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate she has made of the cost of public enquiries relating to Northern Ireland in each year since 1997.

Theresa Villiers: The cost for public inquires relating to Northern Ireland published by my Department since 1997 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  £ million 
			 The Bloody Sunday inquiry 191.5 
			 The Rosemary Nelson inquiry 46.5 
			 The Billy Wright inquiry 30.5 
		
	
	In addition, the Robert Hamill inquiry has been completed, but the report has not been published due to ongoing legal proceedings. The cost as of February 2011 stood at £33 million.
	No public inquiries have been established by the current Government. In 2011, we set up a review into the murder of Patrick Finucane, which reported in 2012 at a cost of £1.1 million.

Sports

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent assessment she has made of the contribution of sports-related tourism to the economy of Northern Ireland.

Theresa Villiers: Northern Ireland has organised a number of world-class sporting events which bring huge benefits for tourism and the economy (sometimes providing a return against investment of 5:1) and encourage people to participate in sport.
	The return of the Irish Open to Royal Portrush in 2012 for the first time since 1953 attracted some 130,000 spectators and was beamed into 350 million households. Golf tourism is particularly valuable as it contributes more to the economy, with the average spend per trip being £300 to £450 compared with the other visitors to Northern Ireland who spend some £188 per trip. I look forward to Northern Ireland hosting the Irish Open again in 2015 at Royal County Down and in 2017 at the Lough Erne Resort, which was also the location for the 2013 G8 summit.
	The World Police and Fire Games in 2013 (the third biggest sporting event in the world) brought a direct economic boost of £7.34 million to the Northern Ireland economy. It has been reported that this figure could rise to £25 million once longer-term benefits to the tourist industry resulting from return visits, the positive media coverage received for Northern Ireland internationally and future international events that will come as a result of the games, are included.
	I am advised, for example, that one corporate sponsor of the WPFG decided to locate its international conference in Northern Ireland instead of another location in Europe directly as a result of the success of the games.
	It is estimated that the Grande Partenza of the Giro d’Italia cycle race that commences in Belfast on 9 May (and featuring 200 riders from over 30 different countries and their technical teams and sponsors) will be seen by 775 million people in 174 countries. The Giro d’Italia is expected to attract 140,000 visitors to Northern Ireland and generate £2.5 million of economic activity and £10 million-worth of worldwide media publicity as it showcases the stunning scenery of Northern Ireland to the world.

Victims

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will review the effect of the operation of section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on services available to assist victims in Northern Ireland.

Theresa Villiers: Responsibility for victims in Northern Ireland was devolved in 2007. All public bodies in Northern Ireland have a duty to promote equality of opportunity, having regard to the desirability of promoting good relations between persons of different religious belief, political opinion or racial group. The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland is responsible for the enforcement of this duty.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Anniversaries: World War II

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to commemorate the 70th anniversary of VE day in 2015.

Helen Grant: DCMS has no formal plans to commemorate VE day in 2015. However, the Heritage Lottery Fund is open to applications for VE-day-related community projects.

Arts: Health Services

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will take steps to implement the recommendations of the Arts on Prescription 2010-2012 report produced by the charity Arts & Minds.

Edward Vaizey: The Arts & Minds charity is doing important work within the arts and health sector. I recently held a roundtable meeting on arts and health focusing on some of the issues raised in the Arts on Prescription report which the Executive Director of Arts & Minds attended. Health initiatives like the Arts on Prescription scheme have the potential to result in cost savings across health and social care and health practitioners and other relevant authorities should give careful consideration to the recommendations.

BBC: Pay

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make representations to the BBC Trust in support of publishing the salaries of all BBC staff earning more than £100,000 per annum.

Edward Vaizey: There are no current plans to make representations to the BBC Trust on ensuring the publication of the salaries of BBC staff. The BBC annually publishes the salaries and total remuneration for those earning £150,000 and over, and discloses the pay of all of its senior managers. Information about BBC staff, including salaries and expenses, can be found on the BBC’s website here:
	http://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/insidethebbc/managementstructure/seniormanagement/

Internet: EU Action

Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies on voluntary restrictions by network providers of adult content of recent proposals from the European Parliament on a European single market for electronic communications;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of EU proposals to remove the right for network operators to block 18-plus content.

Edward Vaizey: We are aware that there are some concerns that the European Parliament’s amendments to the draft connected continent regulation may restrict ISPs’ ability to block illegal content or to filter adult content at the request of customers. The UK Government support the aims of the connect continent package, but let me clear that we will not agree to any proposals that restrict the ability of parents to protect their children from inappropriate content online. We are confident that this was not the intention of the European Parliament and we are working with EU member states, the European Commission and the European Parliament to deliver a final package that promotes an open, safe and secure internet.

Mental Health

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to improve cross-departmental working on promotion of the UK's arts and health sector in order to improve mental health care and wellbeing.

Edward Vaizey: I recently chaired a roundtable meeting on arts and health, which was attended by the co-chairs of the all-party group on arts, health and wellbeing, representatives from academia and health and Government officials, including from the Department of Health. DCMS will continue to work closely with the Department of Health on the promotion of the UK's arts and health sector in order to improve mental health care and wellbeing.

VisitEngland

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what nation branding work VisitEngland has commissioned from external consultants since its inception; with which consultancies the contracts were placed; and what the total value was of the contracts, by supplier.

Helen Grant: Since its inception on 1 April 2009, the total spent on brand-related activity by VisitEngland, including research, motivational barriers, brand messaging and local-level brand management, is c.£61,000. Contracts were placed with three consultancies: Olive Insight, Firelighter and Brand Vista. Details are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Agency Activity Value (£) 
			 2011 Olive Insight To research and guide VE’s wider marketing strategy 1c.11,000 
			 2011 Firelighter To develop the brand messaging informed by the research project 10,000 
			 2011 Brand Vista Further development of local-level brand positioning and (attracting visitors to our most popular places that can dispersing consumers to surrounding areas) 40,000 
			 1 The branding element was included only in the qualitative stage, and accounted for c.35% of the qualitative report—VisitEngland therefore estimates the spend on this element to be c.£11,000.

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

LGBT People

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities whether his Department will attend the International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia Forum 2014 in Valletta.

Sajid Javid: Yes.

Older Workers

Stephen Timms: To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities what recent progress he has made on the appointment of a business champion for older workers.

Jennifer Willott: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 2 April 2014, Official Report, column 651W.

Pupils: Bullying

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities which organisations have been awarded funding to conduct a review of homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in schools.

Jennifer Willott: The contract to conduct a review of the available evidence on the most effective practices to tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in schools has been awarded to NatCen Social Research following a rigorous assessment process.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Air Pollution

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 28 April 2014, Official Report, columns 474-75W, on air pollution, how much funding has been allocated to local projects by the Government's air quality grant programme in each year since 2010.

Dan Rogerson: Total funding allocated to local projects across England by DEFRA’s air quality grant programme since 2010:
	
		
			 Financial year Final award (£) 
			 2010-11 2,361,000 
			 2011-12 3,078,745 
			 2012-13 3,100,000 
			 2013-14 1,000,000 
			   
			 Total 9,539,745

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: There are no current plans for the Department to relocate staff or offices to Brighton.

Flood Control

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent progress has been made on the review of partnership funding for flood defences; and when the results of this review will be published.

Dan Rogerson: The independent evaluation of the Flood and Coastal Resilience Partnership Funding approach was published on 23 April 2014. The report is available on the DEFRA R&D web pages at the following link:
	http://randd.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx ?Menu=Menu&Module=More&Location= None&ProjectID=18734&FromSearch=Y&Publisher= &SearchText=fd2663&SortString=ProjectCode&SortOrder= Asc&Paging=10#Description

Floods: Insurance

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the time taken by insurance companies to compensate those affected by the current year's floods.

Dan Rogerson: Ministers meet insurers on a regular basis to discuss recovery, including time for claim payments. The next Government/industry roundtable is scheduled for 21 May.

Forests

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information his Department holds on the (a) level of world deforestation and (b) growth in world biomass power generation over the last 10 years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Rogerson: Latest figures, supported by recent publications from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, are that 13 million hectares of the world’s forest were converted to other uses or lost through natural causes each year in the last decade (2000-10), including 6 million hectares of primary forests.
	DEFRA does not hold information on the growth in world biomass power generation over the last 10 years.

Plastic Bags

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the effects of plastic bags on marine environments.

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA has funded a number of studies to investigate the potential for the absorption of contaminants by organisms that consume plastics. These studies are published in scientific literature. DEFRA is also currently conducting an analysis of the costs and benefits of the carrier bag charge, including on the marine environment.
	In addition, the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) has been monitoring sea bed litter since 1992 through fisheries stock assessments and marine litter surveys.

Plastic Bags

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects to be able to announce his proposals for a single use plastic bag charge.

Dan Rogerson: Last September the Government announced plans to introduce a charge on single use plastic bags with effect from October 2015. We are developing our proposals and in doing so are considering the recent report of the Environmental Audit Committee, together with the response to our call for evidence. We will announce our response as soon as possible.

Roads

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will commission an inquiry into the extent of problems arising from the use of motorised vehicles on unmetalled roads.

Dan Rogerson: In the Deregulation Bill Committee debate on 25 March, we announced that we propose to form a working group along the lines of the current rights of way Stakeholder Working Group. We will invite stakeholders with the relevant experience and expertise to join a group with an independent chair and secretariat, ensuring that the group contains a balance across the full range of interests.
	Any proposals made by the group for changing the current framework for managing the recreational use of motor vehicles would be subject to a full public consultation.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Apprentices

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will collect data by constituency on apprenticeships in each industrial sector.

Matthew Hancock: We do not collect information centrally on apprenticeships by industrial sector at the parliamentary constituency level. Table 1 shows information from the 2012
	1
	UKCES Employer Perspectives Survey on the proportion of employers that offer formal apprenticeships by industrial sector in the UK.
	Information on apprenticeship starts by Sector Subject Area and geography is published in a Supplementary Table to a Statistical First Release (SFR):
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fe-data-library-apprenticeships--2
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/308418/apprenticeship-starts-by-region-and-sector-subject-area.xls
	Sector Subject Areas are not the same as industrial sectors. Within an industrial sector a learner may undertake a wide range of apprenticeship frameworks, and individual frameworks are assigned under the Sector Subject Area classification.
	1Available at:
	http://www.ukces.org.uk/assets/ukces/docs/publications/evidence-report-64-ukces-employer-perspectives-survey-2012-full-report.pdf
	
		
			 Table 1: Percentage of employers that offer formal apprenticeships by sector in the UK 
			  Percentage 
			 All employers 13 
			   
			 Sector of employer  
			 Primary sector and utilities 6 
			 Manufacturing 18 
			 Construction 19 
			 Trade, accommodation and transportation 11 
			 Business and other services 12 
			 Non-market services 21

Apprentices

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department has on the number of apprentices under 18 years who live at home.

Matthew Hancock: Information collected centrally does not distinguish between apprentices living at home with parents and those who have moved away for the purpose of study.
	We annually ask apprentices for their views and 88% say they are satisfied with their apprenticeship.

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Jennifer Willott: We do not have any plans at this time to relocate staff or offices to Brighton.
	BIS currently has one active property in Brighton, Crown House, which houses the Insolvency Service.
	Any future decisions to move staff and offices to Brighton would be led by the business needs of BIS which would be supported by the Property and Asset Management Team.

Conditions of Employment

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent steps he has taken to ensure that zero-hours contracts are not used in an exploitative manner.

Jennifer Willott: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), launched a consultation on proposals to tackle abuses in the use of zero-hours contracts. The consultation was launched on 19 December 2013, closed on 13 March 2014 and received over 30,000 responses.
	The Government response to the consultation will be published in due course.

Fairgrounds

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will introduce legislative proposals to clarify the obligations that fairground attractions meet when publishing the price of rides.

Jennifer Willott: There is already legislation, the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs), which requires traders to provide consumers with the information they need to make informed decisions. The regulations prohibit commercial practices which omit or hide material information which the average consumer needs, according to the context, to decide how they meet these obligations in relation to the prices they charge, but having a clearly visible price list would be a relatively easy way of ensuring that consumers have access to relevant information. The CPRs also make it a criminal offence to give misleading price information.

Holiday Leave

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will introduce legislative proposals that employers be required to calculate holiday pay solely by reference to standard contract hours.

Jennifer Willott: There are no current plans to require employers to calculate holiday pay solely by reference to standard contract hours.
	The arrangements for holiday pay are set out in the Working Time Regulations 1998.
	These arrangements differ according to the working pattern of the individual worker. If a worker has fixed hours and fixed pay, then a week’s holiday pay is the same amount as a worker receives for each week’s work. If the worker has no fixed hours, then a week’s holiday pay represents the average pay that a worker received over the previous 12 weeks.
	More information about holiday pay can be found on the gov.uk website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/holiday-pay-the-basics

Literacy

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what proportion of adults in (a) the UK and (b) the smallest geographical areas in the UK for which information is held are functionally illiterate.

Matthew Hancock: The 2011 Skills for Life survey provides an estimate of adult literacy levels for people aged between 16 and 65 years old in England, based on fieldwork conducted between May 2010 and February 2011. The headline findings of the survey were published in December 2011.1 The survey results show that 14.9% (5.1 million) of people had a literacy level below level 1. Level 1 is viewed as the level required to be ‘functionally literate’, the level needed to get by in life and at work2, and so people below this level could be defined as having a low level of literacy. Level 1 is equivalent to GCSE grades D to G. Adults with skills below level 1 can read or write, but their skills may be limited—for example, they may not be able to read bus or train timetables.
	The 2011 Skills for Life survey also provided Small Area modelled estimates3 for sub-regional geographies. This analysis provides estimates of the proportion and number of people above and below the ‘functional literacy’ threshold (i.e. National Qualification Framework Level 1) for sub-regional geographies in England. The smallest geographical areas reported in this analysis are middle-layer super output areas—these are small areas of consistent size (of about 7,200 people) used for the collection and reporting of small area statistics by the Office for National Statistics.
	The recent OECD Survey of Adult Skills, published in 2013, based on fieldwork August 2011 and March 2012, included estimates of UK literacy levels, based on England and Northern Ireland (Scotland and Wales did not participate in the survey). National reports for England and Northern Ireland4 based on the OECD survey note that 17% of adults in England had low proficiency in literacy (i.e. at or below the OECD level 1 in literacy, roughly equivalent to below NQF level 1 literacy), compared with 18% in Northern Ireland.
	1 TNS-BMRB and AlphaPlus Consultancy Ltd. (2011) “2011 Skills for Life survey: headline findings”, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, BIS research paper 57. Available online at:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/further-education-skills/docs/0-9/11-1367-2011-skills-for-life-survey-findings.pdf
	accessed on 7 May 2014.
	2 As defined in the Leitch review of skills. See Leitch, S. (2006) “Prosperity for All in the Global Economy—world class skills”, available online at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/media/6/4/leitch_finalreport051206.pdf
	accessed on 7 May 2014: page 61-62.
	3 Available online at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/2011-skills-for-life-survey-small-area-estimation-data
	accessed on 6 February 2014.
	4 NFER (2013) The International Survey of Adult Skills: adult literacy, numeracy and problem solving skills in England, BIS research report 139. Available online at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/246534/bis-13-1221-international-survey-of-adult-skills-2012.pdf
	accessed on 7 May 2014; NFER (2013) The International Survey of Adult Skills: adult literacy, numeracy and problem solving skills in Northern Ireland, Department for Employment and Learning. Available online at:
	http://www.delni.gov.uk/international-survey-adult-skills-2012.pdf
	accessed on 7 May 2014.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he intends to reply to the letter to the Minister for Skills and Enterprise dated 27 February 2014 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton (Sir Gerald Kaufman) with regard to Mr John Mannion.

Matthew Hancock: Although the Department has received and responded to earlier correspondence from the right hon. Gentleman on behalf of this constituent, we have no record of having received the letter referred to. If he could send a copy of this latest correspondence, we will deal with it as a matter of urgency.

Regional Growth Fund

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Regional Growth Fund bids were submitted by each local enterprise partnership area in the most recent bidding round; and how many of these were successful.

Michael Fallon: 133 bids were submitted to round 5 of the Regional Growth Fund. Three of these bids withdrew and one was for less than the £1 million bidding threshold.
	129 bids were therefore appraised, of which 98 were projects and 31 were programmes. Of these, 13 programmes and 37 projects were selected. Programmes may cover a number of local enterprise partnership (LEP) areas and some are national in scope so are not represented in the following table.
	The following table shows the number of round 5 project bids by LEP area with the number of bids that were selected for funding. Project bids originating from an area covered by more than one LEP are shown at the bottom of the table.
	
		
			 Number 
			 LEP round 5 projects Applications Selected 
			 Black Country 1 0 
			 Cheshire and Warrington 5 1 
			 Coast to Capital 2 1 
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly 5 0 
			 Coventry and Warwickshire 2 2 
			 Cumbria 1 0 
			 Enterprise M3 1 1 
			 Gloucestershire 1 1 
			 Greater Birmingham and Solihull 6 3 
			 Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough 1 0 
			 Greater Lincolnshire 1 0 
			 Greater Manchester 5 2 
			 Heart of the South West 13 3 
			 Hertfordshire 1 0 
		
	
	
		
			 Humber 2 1 
			 Lancashire 4 1 
			 Leeds City Region 3 2 
			 Leicester and Leicestershire 2 0 
			 Liverpool City Region 5 3 
			 London 3 0 
			 New Anglia 1 0 
			 North Eastern 7 5 
			 Sheffield City Region 2 0 
			 South East 1 0 
			 South East Midlands 2 2 
			 Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire 1 0 
			 Swindon and Wiltshire 2 1 
			 Tees Valley 8 6 
			 Thames Valley Berkshire 1 0 
			 West of England 2 0 
			 York and North Yorkshire 1 0 
			    
			 Project bids from an area covered by more than one LEP:   
			 Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, and Sheffield City Region 1 0 
			 Greater Birmingham and Solihull and Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire 1 1 
			 Greater Birmingham and Solihull and Worcestershire 1 0 
			 Greater Cambridge and Greater Peterborough and New Anglia 1 0 
			 Northamptonshire and South East Midlands 2 1 
			    
			 Grand total 98 37

Shipbuilding

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the announcement of 25 April 2014, entitled Chancellor puts UK at forefront of ocean research with new polar science ship, if he will take steps to ensure that the new polar research ship is constructed in a UK shipyard.

David Willetts: This new polar flagship presents a significant opportunity for British business to show that it can compete with the best in the world. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) will be working hard to make sure that British business it aware of the major opportunities around the project. The UK has world-class skills and technology in this area and the Government hope that UK marine and maritime companies will take the wider range of opportunities—from the design and building of the ship, through to its operation and maintenance.
	This ship will cost more than £200 million and legally it has to be procured through open competition. This ensures a fair process so that the UK gets the best possible product with the best value to the taxpayer. The Natural Environment Research Council’s British Antarctic Survey will be operating the ship. It will be consulting the scientific community on the detailed specification for the ship shortly. An invitation to tender is expected to be issued in summer 2015.

Timber: Imports

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of levels of imports of wood for biomass combustion within the UK in the last three years for which figures are available; and from what countries that wood was imported.

Michael Fallon: Data on the value of imports of fuel wood are published by HMRC in Overseas Trade Statistics. Data for the years 2011 to 2013 are shown in the following table for Standard International Trade Classification (SITC) 245.01—Fuel wood, in logs, in billets, in twigs, in faggots or in similar forms (excluding wood waste).
	
		
			 UK imports of fuel wood (SITC 245.01) by partner country (sorted by total value of fuel wood imports over the three years, high to low) 
			 £ 
			  2011 2012 2013 
			 Total (all countries) 2,164,613 2,515,611 3,668,665 
			     
			 Latvia 855,773 573,022 1,508,111 
			 Netherlands 592,400 892,166 576,180 
			 Poland 208,031 200,393 771,578 
			 Ukraine 72,122 117,802 201,861 
			 Indonesia 0 118,859 201,681 
			 Irish Republic 18,387 7,802 151,518 
			 Ghana 52,855 49,662 47,408 
			 Germany 0 140,172 7,398 
			 South Africa 108,207 9,337 0 
			 Estonia 0 112,771 0 
			 Thailand 50,750 53,545 5,680 
			 United States 0 41,614 64,413 
			 Malaysia 18,455 42,920 40,101 
			 Sweden 52 62,245 10,451 
			 Australia 65,785 0 0 
			 Namibia 47,732 6,528 1,430 
			 Hong Kong 0 46,680 0 
			 Belarus 27,958 0 0 
			 Egypt 0 8,807 15,494 
			 Lithuania 1,369 2,144 20,669 
			 Bosnia and Herz. 0 0 20,053 
			 Vietnam 13,877 3,946 0 
			 Canada 0 0 16,303 
			 Denmark 0 14,536 0 
			 China 6,165 6,251 610 
			 Honduras 12,853 0 0 
			 Pakistan 0 4,409 4,915 
			 Jamaica 8,318 0 0 
			 Guyana 3,524 0 0 
			 India 0 0 1,822 
			 UAE 0 0 530 
			 Spain 0 0 459 
			 Source: HMRC Overseas Trade Statistics

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: While noting the many virtues of Brighton, as recognised by the conferring of city status to the towns of Brighton and Hove by Her Majesty in 2000, I am afraid I have to disappoint my hon. Friend. My Department has no current plans to dig out our bucket and spade and move to the seaside.
	Since May 2010, my Department’s priority has been to rationalise our wider estate to reduce costs. This has seen the Department surrender six leasehold office properties through a combination of lease breaks and expiries generating net savings in the period of around £7 million per annum. The Department has also successfully sub-let surplus space across its leasehold office estate during the same period, reducing the overall property costs by around £11.1 million.
	The Department has also negotiated the early surrender of Eland House and is shortly scheduled to relocate to 2 Marsham Street to share premises with the Home Office. This move will reduce our Department’s running costs by a further £9 million a year and generate savings for the taxpayer of £220 million over the lifetime of the building’s lease. This illustrates the scope for Government and, indeed, the public sector as a whole to make sensible savings through better property management.
	However, I commend my hon. Friend for his cheerleading of the city as a place to do business.

Business Premises: Change of Use

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many conversions of office premises to housing have been notified to him since the lifting of planning approval requirements for such conversions; and how many social housing units have been included in such conversions.

Nicholas Boles: New homes are being created now because of the permitted development right for office to residential change of use. These new homes are helping to address the country’s housing need regardless of tenure. Developers seeking to convert an office to a residential property are required to seek prior approval from the local planning authority. A survey by Estates Gazette has found that there were more than 2,250 applications for change of use from office to residential in the first six months since the change was introduced. Some of these developments are, in themselves, each set to deliver more than 100 homes. The Department will begin collecting data on the number of prior approval applications from local planning authorities later in the year, covering applications from April 2014.

Combined Authorities

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will publish the guidance he has issued to combined authorities on good practice on the representation of opposition councillors on (a) the new bodies set up under the Combined Authority regulations and (b) the scrutiny panels; and what sanctions he has in the event of combined authorities not complying with best practice.

Brandon Lewis: Following the recent establishment of four new combined authorities, I wrote to the leaders of the councils involved setting out the good practice that I expect them to follow with regards to governance and transparency. We believe that following such good practice will ensure that the various political parties represented on all the councils concerned will have appropriate involvement and influence in the work of the combined authorities. A copy of those letters were also published on the Government’s website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/letter-from-brandon-lewis-on-combined-authorities-governance-and-transparency
	and
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/letter-to-leaders-of-the-combined-authority-for-the-area-of-durham-northumberland-and-tyne-and-wear
	The Government believe that it would reinforce the confidence all have in the effectiveness and accountability of combined authorities and economic prosperity boards, if the following of this good practice was guaranteed. I launched a consultation on 30 April regarding changes that the Government propose to make to the legislation relating to combined authorities and economic prosperity boards. This consultation includes the proposal to require combined authorities and economic prosperity boards to have one or more overview and scrutiny committee(s) constituted with a membership reflecting the political balance of the councils concerned. This consultation closes on 24 June and can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/proposals-to-amend-legislation-relating-to-combined-authorities-and-economic-prosperity-boards
	I have placed copies of the associated documents in the Library of the House.

Conditions of Employment

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people in his Department have been employed on zero-hours contracts in each of the last two years.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 1 May 2014
	My Department has employed the following numbers of staff on zero-hours contracts in each of the last two years:
	2012-13—two
	2013-14—two
	In all cases, these were short-term arrangements for individuals to complete specific pieces of work which required particular expertise or professional skills.

Council Tax: Empty Property

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for what reason the empty home premium starts when a property first becomes empty rather than when a property is bought with the intention of renovating and occupying it.

Stephen Williams: The empty homes premium aims to reduce the total length of time for which properties are empty, not the length of time for which they are empty under a particular owner.
	Since the power came into effect on 1 April 2013, 239 councils in England have introduced the empty homes premium. The number of long-term empty homes fell by 38,009 between October 2012 and October 2013.
	Properties that are left empty due to the death of the occupier are exempt from council tax for up to six months after the granting of probate, or after letters of administration have been signed.

Fire Services

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department paid Sir Ken Knight in (a) salary, (b) fees and (c) expenses for the independent review of efficiency and operations in fire and rescue authorities in England.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 24 March 2014
	Sir Ken Knight worked on his independent review between 1 January and 22 June 2013. He was paid £53,635 during this period. Between 1 January and 28 January 2013, Sir Ken was also the Government’s Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser in addition to conducting initial fieldwork for his review. His salary rate while working on the Knight Review was in line with his previous salary rate when he was Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser.
	Sir Ken’s review found huge variations in the way the 46 fire and rescue authorities in England operate and highlighted the scope for the services to find £200 million in savings while safeguarding emergency operations and protecting public safety. His report highlighted the importance of collaboration with other local services in helping fire and rescue authorities to transform the way they run to meet the changing needs of communities. The Government will be publishing a formal response to the report in due course. The best fire and rescue authorities are already beginning to collaborate with police and ambulance services and local authorities—through co-location of stations and services, through sharing back-office functions, including sharing senior staff, and through co-responding and joining up on service delivery.

Fire Services

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the letter of 30 April 2014 from the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to the chairmen of fire and rescue authorities and the Chairman of the Local Government Association's Fire Service Management Committee, if he will put forward the revised proposals for consideration by firefighters and the Fire Brigades Union.

Brandon Lewis: It is common knowledge that we agreed to ask the Government Actuary's Department to cost proposals put forward by the Fire Brigades Union. These were Fire Brigades Union proposals which the Government had not taken a view on.
	My letter to the General Secretary of the Fire Brigades Union of 23 April said that
	“we are now considering this proposal across Government. While we are not yet in a position to respond positively to your suggested changes, I will inform you of the outcome of those deliberations as soon as possible”.
	I had also been clear with the Fire Brigades Union leadership that it was only possible to consider such proposals during a period when strike action was in abeyance. Rather than continue and finalise that constructive process the Fire Brigades Union leadership chose to call a halt to discussions prematurely by announcing strike action.

Homelessness

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the (a) change and (b) percentage change was in the number of homelessness acceptances arising from the end of a private sector tenancy in each (i) London local authority and (ii) English region between March 2010 and December 2013.

Kris Hopkins: To assist public scrutiny, I have placed in the Library of the House a table showing homelessness acceptances due to loss of private sector tenancy, by local authority, in each year from 2003 to 2013.
	Data are not collected by parliamentary constituency. My Department does not publish statistics by the former Government office regions.
	The dataset shows that under the last Administration, the average numbers were higher than under this Administration, especially when taking account the changes in the overall size to the private rented sector.
	I would note that the rental sector policies of HM Opposition would make the problem worse, by reducing the availability of private rented accommodation, forcing up rents and discouraging investment in the private rented sector. By contrast, this Government are increasing house building, delivering £19.5 billion of investment in affordable housing, supporting billions of private investment in new private rented accommodation, providing £470 million to prevent and tackle all forms of homelessness, and avoiding the excessive regulation which would harm the interests of tenants.

Homelessness: Ashfield

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people in Ashfield constituency were homeless in each of the last five years.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 6 May 2014
	Statistics for decisions taken on homelessness applications and acceptances in each financial year since 2004-05, by local authority area, are published in live table 784, which is available online at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness
	Figures are not collated by parliamentary constituency.

Local Government Finance

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the spending power is for (a) Wokingham Council and (b) Newcastle upon Tyne City Council in (i) 2013-14, (ii) 2014-15 and (iii) 2015-16.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 1 May 2014
	Spending power figures by local authority are published as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement, which is laid before the House each year. This information is also reasonably accessible to the hon. Gentleman on my Department’s website at:
	2014-15 and provisional 2015-16
	www.gov.uk/government/collections/final-local-government-finance-settlement-england-2014-to-2015
	2013-14
	www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1314/settle.htm

Non-domestic Rates

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward proposals to enable small businesses to claim a rates reduction to help them retain staff.

Brandon Lewis: As announced at the Autumn Statement, the Government have introduced in England a £1 billion package of business rates support for 2014-15. That includes the continued doubling of Small Business Rate Relief for a further year, which we estimate will support 540,000 businesses. The Localism Act 2011 has also made it easier for small firms to claim the rate relief to which they are entitled. This support builds on the £11 billion a year of tax cuts this Government have announced to corporation tax, employer national insurance contributions and fuel duty.
	Business rates in Northern Ireland is a matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Non-domestic Rates: Chelmsford

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of how many small businesses in Chelmsford constituency will benefit from the extension of the small business rate relief scheme.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 13 February 2014
	No estimate has been made of the number of small businesses in Chelmsford constituency that will benefit from the extension of the doubling of small business rate relief.
	The Government estimate that around 540,000 businesses in England will benefit from the extension of the doubling of small business rate relief announced at autumn statement 5 December 2013, Official Report, columns 1101-1113.
	It is planned that next month some new local figures for small business rate relief by billing authority will be published.

Policy

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in what circumstances he uses a calculation of the (a) value of preventing a fatality, (b) willingness to pay and (c) cost-per-quality adjusted life year approach to quantify the value of a policy intervention; what other tools he uses to quantify the benefit of a policy intervention; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: The Green Book and associated supplementary guidance is publicly available on the Treasury website. It sets out a range of approaches and methods that may be appropriate in a number of different appraisal circumstances.

Racial Discrimination

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much financial support his Department provided to Hope not Hate in each of the last three years; and what steps he takes to prevent the use of such monies for party political campaigning.

Stephen Williams: Hope not Hate has not received any financial support from the Department for Communities and Local Government.
	This Department provided Searchlight Educational Trust, a registered charity, with a grant of £66,000 in the financial year 2012-13 to establish community partnerships to foster integration in four neighbourhoods.
	Following completion of the project, Searchlight Educational Trust changed its name to Hope Not Hate Educational Ltd. We monitored progress with the project closely and are satisfied that the funding for Searchlight Educational Trust was used for purposes outlined in the funding agreement and that no funding was used for party political campaigning. Conditions in the funding agreement prevent funds from being spent on political campaigning. Furthermore, an organisation that exists for political purposes would not meet the criteria for charitable status, so we would be unable to award it a grant under the Charities Act 2006.
	I am aware that it has been claimed that the Department has funded campaigning by Hope not Hate against a certain political party. This is completely untrue.

Respite Care

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which organisations have received how much funding from his Department aimed at supporting access to short breaks and respite provision for children, young people and their families experiencing all types of disadvantage in each of the last five financial years.

Brandon Lewis: Funding for such schemes would be a matter for local authorities, rather than being directly funded by my Department.

Social Security

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding will be put in place to support local discretionary welfare provision after 2015.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 16 January 2014
	: The nationally run Community Care Grants and Crisis Loans were poorly targeted and failed to help those most in need. So, in 2012 as part of wider welfare reform, the Department for Work and Pensions abolished these national discretionary schemes and transferred responsibility to local authorities so they could deliver and tailor new local support as part of their existing services to their communities.
	Councils can continue to provide support to those in their community who face financial difficulties or who find themselves in unavoidable circumstances, but there is no requirement to replicate the previous approach adopted by central Government.
	In contrast to a centralised grant system that was poorly targeted, under the reforms of the Department for Work and Pensions, councils can now choose how best to support local welfare needs within their areas—what is right for, say, Rochdale may not be for other authorities. Some councils have already chosen to wind down their dedicated schemes following underspends.
	In the next spending round period, from April 2015, central Government continue to provide support to local authorities through general funds as part of the coalition Government’s commitment to reducing ring-fencing and ending top-down Whitehall control.
	The Department for Work and Pensions provided a separate fund for 2013-15 and is carrying out a review of the provision to date.

Social Security Benefits

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations he has received on the decision to withdraw the local welfare provision grant in 2015-16; and what consultation he undertook prior to making that decision.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 30 January 2014
	DCLG Ministers and officials talk regularly to elected members and officers of local authorities about a range of issues.
	The nationally run Community Care Grants and Crisis Loans were poorly targeted and failed to help those most in need. So, in 2012 as part of wider welfare reform, the Department for Work and Pensions abolished these national discretionary schemes and transferred responsibility to local authorities so they could deliver and tailor new local support as part of their existing services to their communities.
	Councils can continue to provide support to those in their community who face financial difficulties or who find themselves in unavoidable circumstances, but there is no requirement to replicate the previous approach adopted by central Government.
	In contrast to a centralised grant system that was poorly targeted, under the reforms of the Department for Work and Pensions, councils can now choose how best to support local welfare needs within their areas—what is right for, say, Barrow and Furness may not be for other authorities. Some councils have already chosen to wind down their dedicated schemes following underspends.
	In the next spending round period, from April 2015, central Government continue to provide support to local authorities through general funds as part of the coalition Government's commitment to reducing ring-fencing and ending top-down Whitehall control.
	The Department for Work and Pensions provided a separate fund for 2013-2015 and is carrying out a review of the provision to date.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many families were placed in temporary accommodation in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Kris Hopkins: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to Live Table 784 available on my Department’s website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness
	The numbers of households in temporary accommodation in London are still well below the level they were at their peak, under the previous Administration, when they hit more than 63,800. Councils have a responsibility to move homeless households into settled accommodation as quickly as possible and we made common-sense changes to the law to enable them to use suitable private rented homes. Indeed, the average stay in temporary accommodation in England has been reduced from 20 months at the beginning of 2010 to 14 months now.
	We have also seen a 42% reduction in the numbers of families with children in bed and breakfast for more than six weeks on this time last year across the country. The seven local authorities that we funded to tackle families in bed and breakfast have made significant progress, achieving an overall reduction of 96% since the funding began.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what change there has been in the number and proportion of homeless households in nightly booked temporary accommodation in London since March 2010.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 17 March 2014
	: The Department does not collect information specifically on numbers of homeless households in nightly-booked temporary accommodation.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what the actual and percentage change was in the number of households from each London local authority provided with temporary accommodation outside their home borough between March 2010 and December 2013;
	(2)  if he will rank how many homeless households were placed in each London local authority by other local authorities since 2010; and how many homeless households each London local authority has placed in authorities other than their own since 2010.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 17 March 2014
	I refer the hon. Lady to my answer to her of 19 December 2013, Official Report, column 713W.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the actual and percentage change was in the number of homeless households in temporary accommodation in each London local authority between March 2010 and December 2013.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 17 March 2014
	I refer the hon. Lady to the Live Table 784 available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness
	The dataset is already accessible for statistical analysis.
	The numbers of households in temporary accommodation in London are still well below the level they were at their peak, under the previous Administration, when they hit more than 63,800. Councils have a responsibility to move homeless households into settled accommodation as quickly as possible and we made common-sense changes to the law to enable them to use suitable private rented homes. Indeed the average stay in temporary accommodation in England has been reduced from 20 months at the beginning of 2010 to 14 months now.
	We have also seen a 42% reduction in the numbers of families with children in bed and breakfast for more than six weeks on this time last year across the country. The seven local authorities that we funded to tackle families in bed and breakfast have made significant progress, achieving an overall reduction of 96% since the funding began.

Temporary Accommodation: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many homeless households have been placed in temporary accommodation in each London local authority by councils other than their own in each of the last eight quarters;
	(2)  which 30 local authority areas have received the largest number of homeless households in temporary accommodation placed by London local authorities since March 2010;
	(3)  how many households have been placed in temporary accommodation in each London local authority by councils other than their own since March 2010;
	(4)  how many households have been placed in temporary accommodation by London councils in each local authority area outside London since March 2010.

Kris Hopkins: holding answer 17 March 2014
	I refer the hon. Lady to my answer to her of 19 December 2013, Official Report, column 713W.

Urban Areas

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to promote the enhancement of urban (a) green infrastructure and (b) waterways.

Nicholas Boles: The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that local planning authorities should plan positively for the creation, protection, enhancement and management of green infrastructure. This is supported by the recently published planning guidance which includes guidance on green infrastructure.
	The maintenance and promotion of inland waterways is a matter for navigation authorities rather than Government. However, Government provide grant-in- aid funding to the two largest navigation authorities in England and Wales—the Canal & River Trust and the Environment Agency.

Urban Areas: Climate Change

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the recommendations in the report commissioned by the EU Committee of the Regions on Policy instruments for adaptation to climate change in big European cities and metropolitan areas.

Dan Rogerson: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
	We have noted the report’s recommendations and recognise the complex challenges cities face from climate change.
	DEFRA published the first National Adaptation Programme (NAP) report last July. This sets out a wide range of actions to develop the UK’s resilience to climate change and associated severe weather events. In developing this report, the Government worked with the Core Cities Group (comprising the largest eight cities in England), London councils and the Greater London Authority to agree the NAP Cities Commitment. We continue to work closely with these cities to support this commitment to action, including through a recent inward secondment to DEFRA from Newcastle city council.
	The Mayors Adapt initiative recently launched by the European Commission under the EU Adaptation Strategy also provides a vehicle through which cities across Europe can network and share their experiences on adaptation.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he plans to answer Question 196666, tabled on 25 April 2014 for answer on 30 April 2014.

Brandon Lewis: Question 196666 was answered on 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 29W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to reply to Question 191523, on homeless households, tabled by the hon. Member for Westminster North (Ms Buck) on 11 March 2014.

Kris Hopkins: Question 191523 has been answered today.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to reply to questions 191722, 191723, 191726, 191727, 191728, 191729, 191730 and 191731, on homeless households, tabled by the hon. Member for Westminster North (Ms Buck) on 12 March 2014.

Kris Hopkins: Questions 191722, 191723, 191726, 191727, 191728, 191729, 191730 and 191731 were answered today.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how her Department plans to develop its existing work on violence against women in Afghanistan in its next operational plan.

Justine Greening: DFID works with partners in Afghanistan, including other donors, Afghan women and civil society groups, and the Afghan Government to build on our existing work tackling violence against women and improving women’s rights.
	This includes £3 million funding for a joint programme with the Australian Government to improve the implementation of laws designed to protect women and girls affected by violence. From 2014, up to £2 million in grants from the DFID-funded Tawanmandi programme to Afghan civil society organisations will also be primarily focused on the elimination of violence against women and girls.

Afghanistan

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether she plans to implement the Independent Commission for Aid Impact's recommendation that beneficiaries in Afghanistan should be directly consulted when new projects are being designed and that Afghan women should be consulted on development of the new strategic priority on violence against women.

Justine Greening: DFID already uses a variety of methods to ensure intended beneficiaries in Afghanistan are consulted in the design of new programmes and monitoring of existing programmes.
	DFID already consults Afghan women and civil society groups to inform our strategy and programmes for tackling violence against women and improving women’s rights.

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of her Department to Brighton; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Duncan: DFID currently has dual UK headquarters in London and Scotland. We have no plans to relocate staff to Brighton.

Developing Countries: Disability

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to ensure that her Department's vaccination programmes reach children with disabilities.

Lynne Featherstone: The UK is a leading advocate for vaccination coverage that ensures that the poorest and most vulnerable groups, including those with disability, have access to essential vaccines. The UK funds the GAVI Alliance, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and the Measles and Rubella Initiative to conduct supplemental immunisation activities, specifically targeting children who are outside the routine immunisation service delivery system.
	The UK’s goal on immunisations is that every child is fully immunised with equitable coverage of core vaccines. In 2011, the UK committed over four years to vaccinate over 80 million children against preventable diseases, including diseases which can lead to disability, through the GAVI Alliance. DFID’s 2014 Annual Report shows we are on track to meet this commitment.

Developing Countries: Energy

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps she is taking to ensure that access to safe, affordable energy in rural areas is being treated as a specific high-priority target in the formulation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK is engaging fully in the UN Open Working Group where discussions on the next set of development goals are taking place. We continue to push strongly for the inclusion of targets in line with the Sustainable Energy for All initiative, including universal access to modern energy services by 2030.

Developing Countries: Equality

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what consideration she has given to the case for having a stand-alone, specific goal on inequality in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Justine Greening: The UK supports a focus on “leaving no one behind” across the post-2015 framework, as was recommended by the High Level Panel which was co-chaired by the Prime Minister.

Developing Countries: HIV Infection

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many full-time members of staff in her Department have responsibility for issues relating to HIV/AIDS.

Justine Greening: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the answer I provided to him on 11 March 2014, Official Report, column 187W.

Developing Countries: Malaria

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many full time members of staff in her Department have responsibility for malaria programmes.

Justine Greening: There are 12 full-time staff in the Health Services Team and Global Funds Department whose roles include work on malaria. In addition there are a wide range of staff across the Department, including research, press, policy, financial and corporate advisers and staff in the regional departments and country offices, whose roles include work on malaria.

Developing Countries: Marketing

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  which nation-branding consultancies have been funded or part-funded by her Department to work in overseas states and territories in which it has operated in the last 10 years; and what fees have been paid to each of those consultancies in each year since 2004;
	(2)  whether her Department, its executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies have funded or made contribution towards funding relating to nation- branding development in any overseas state or territory in which it operates or has operated in the last 10 years.

Justine Greening: DFID does not fund nation-branding development.

Developing Countries: Tuberculosis

Jim Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many full time members of staff in her Department have responsibility for tuberculosis.

Justine Greening: There are 12 full-time staff in the Health Services Team and Global Funds Department whose roles include work on tuberculosis. In addition there are a wide range of staff across the Department, including research, press, policy, financial and corporate advisers and staff in country offices, whose roles include work on tuberculosis.

Nigeria

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance her Department has provided to supporting security capacity building in Nigeria since 2010.

Lynne Featherstone: Since 2010 DFID has supported a £35 million Justice for All (J4A) programme which seeks to improve personal security and access to justice for all Nigerians.
	FID also supports a £39 million Nigeria Stability and Reconciliation Programme which supports Nigerian institutions and partners to manage conflicts, reduce incidence of violence and the impact of violence on the most vulnerable groups including women and girls.

Nigeria

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether any adjustments have been made to her Department's funding programmes or priorities in Nigeria in response to the mass kidnapping of 14 April 2014.

Lynne Featherstone: We are currently reviewing existing programmes which are active in northern Nigeria and considering with other UK Government Departments what additional support may be required to support the Government of Nigeria in their response to the abductions in Borno State.
	DFID’s Nigeria Stability and Reconciliation Programme is already scaling up its work in Borno State. This includes commencing work with a range of local civil society organisations to prevent violence against women and to support survivors of sexual violence, including through the provision of trauma counselling.

Nigeria

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what meetings she and Ministers in her Department have held with Nigerian (a) Ministers, (b) Government officials and (c) consular officials regarding the safety of young women in Nigeria since the mass kidnapping of 14 April 2014.

Lynne Featherstone: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is leading on engagement with Nigerian Government officials. I refer the hon. Lady to the answer provided by the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Mark Simmonds), on 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 74W, to the right hon. and learned Member for Camberwell and Peckham (Ms Harman).
	In addition, DFID has discussed what development support we can offer with our key development counterparts in Government.

Nigeria

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what meetings she and Ministers in her Department have held with programme partners regarding the safety of young women in Nigeria since the mass kidnapping on 14 April 2014;
	(2)  what advice her Department is providing to its partners involved in education provision in Nigeria on the safety of female students.

Lynne Featherstone: DFID officials are in regular contact with programme partners working in the northern states of Nigeria. Since the mass kidnapping we have discussed what further support we can offer, particularly through our security focused programmes.
	DFID Nigeria actively monitors the security situation and assesses risks within all areas that we operate, providing regular security updates to partners involved in project implementation.

Pitcairn Islands

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 80W on the Pacific Islands, how much support and under what categories her Department gave directly to Pitcairn Island in 2013-14.

Alan Duncan: DFID holds a legal obligation to meet the reasonable needs of Pitcairn Island. In 2013-14 DFID provided a total of £2,809,462 to Pitcairn Island to ensure the maintenance of a range of basic public services (e.g. electricity, telecommunications), to ensure continued child safeguarding is in place for the remaining children on Pitcairn, and to support the shipping service that provides the only freight and passenger services to and from the island.

South Sudan

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will raise at the UN the prospects of severe famine in South Sudan.

Lynne Featherstone: The UK is extremely concerned about the humanitarian situation in South Sudan. The ongoing conflict, which has led to the displacement of over 900,000 people within the country, limited the ability of people to plant their crops, and disrupted trade and local markets. There is concern that those in conflict-affected states will experience famine later this year.
	The UK is taking a leading role in responding to the crisis. We have so far contributed £20 million to the United Nations and international non-governmental organisations for emergency humanitarian assistance inside South Sudan. We are considering additional support. We will continue to take every opportunity, including in the United Nations, to raise our concerns about the deteriorating humanitarian situation.

TREASURY

Debt Collection

Ian Lavery: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what the staffing levels at HM Revenue and Customs debt management collectors were in (a) debt management telephony centres, (b) field force, (c) debt collection intervention teams, (d) debt technical offices and (e) late stage intervention in each of the last three years;
	(2)  what the average annual (a) cost of employing HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) debt management collectors and (b) value of interventions undertaken by individual HMRC debt management collectors are in (i) debt management telephony centres, (ii) field force, (iii) debt collection intervention teams, (iv) debt technical offices and (v) late stage intervention.

David Gauke: Staff numbers fluctuate throughout the year, but the following number of staff were in post at 31 March for each of the last three years:
	
		
			  2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 
			 DMTC/DCIT 1,276 1,194 1,336 
			 Field Force 631 601 531 
			 DTO 1,012 1,223 1,113 
			 LAST — 242 277 
			 Total 2,919 3,260 3,257 
		
	
	HMRC uses an appropriate mix of interventions to recover outstanding debt based on assessments of previous behaviour, (credit) risk and likely ability to pay. The allocation of various activities to specific debts is not mutually exclusive—some debtors may experience multiple contacts if they do not respond to initial attempts at recovery.
	The table below shows the overall annual amount of debts which HMRC has pursued and cleared in recent years.
	
		
			 £ billion 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 
			 Total debt processed 51 53 47 59

Entry Clearances

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions his Department has had with the Home Office on the economic effect of the Tier 1 (Investor) visa; and if he will make a statement.

Danny Alexander: Treasury Ministers and officials have regular discussions with the Home Office on a wide variety of topics as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Housing: Taxation

James Clappison: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what methods of assessing liability for a levy on higher-value homes have been considered by his Department in the course of preparatory work on the introduction of such a tax; whether individual valuation of properties has been considered in such work; and what estimate has been made of the cost of implementation of such a tax;
	(2)  what estimate has been made of the yield of a levy on higher-value homes during the preparatory work carried out by his Department into the possible introduction of such a tax;
	(3)  what estimate has been made of the number of properties in each region liable for a possible levy on higher-value homes;
	(4)  what work has been carried out by his Department’s officials on the possible introduction of a levy on higher-value homes; what starting points for liability in the value of properties have been considered in the course of any such work; and if he will publish that work;
	(5)  what consultations have been carried out with (a) valuers and (b) other organisations on the possible introduction of a levy on higher-value homes;
	(6)  what account his Department has taken of mortgage liability in its assessment of liability for levy on higher-value homes as part of its work preparatory to the possible introduction of such a tax.

David Gauke: The Government do not intend to introduce a new levy on higher-value homes.
	The number of residential properties in the UK valued at more than £2 million was estimated before Budget 2012 to be around 55,000. The Treasury does not have a precise regional breakdown of properties worth over £2 million.
	Budget 2012 introduced a number of changes to high value property tax, including the introduction of the annual tax on enveloped dwellings (ATED), a tax on residential properties valued at more than £2 million owned through certain corporate ‘envelopes’.
	Self-assessment was chosen for ATED. The cost of implementing ATED was set out in the tax information and impact note published alongside Budget 2013, available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2013/tiin-1182.pdf
	The cost of implementation of a new levy would be dependent on the nature of the tax.
	As part of the introduction of ATED, a public consultation document was published and a variety of organisations responded. The response to the consultation can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/ensuring-the-fair-taxation-of-residential-property-transactions
	When developing ATED, no account was taken of mortgage liability.

Income Tax

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total estimated number of higher rate taxpayers was in (a) the last financial year and (b) 2010.

David Gauke: Estimates of the number of taxpayers at each income tax rate band are published in HMRC’s National Statistics which are available on the internet at the following address:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/number-of-individual-income-taxpayers-by-marginal-rate-gender-and-age

Individual Savings Accounts

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of people who have utilised their full tax-free ISA allowance in each of the last three years in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland and (c) each parliamentary constituency.

David Gauke: Until 1 July 2014 there are two allowances for ISAs: a cash and an overall allowance. This answer assumes the hon. Lady is asking about the overall allowance.
	The following table contains the number of individuals who made full use of their (£10,680) ISA allowance in 2011-12 in the UK and in Scotland.
	
		
			 Country Number of individuals (thousands) 
			 Scotland 73 
			 United Kingdom 1,005 
		
	
	A breakdown for 2012-13 and 2013-14 is not yet available. Constituency-level statistics are not available.
	As announced at Budget 2014, from 1 July 2014 the overall annual New ISA subscription limit will be increased to £15,000 and can be used for either cash or stocks and shares investments, or any combination of the two, up to this limit.
	This measure will reduce income tax on savings for people constrained by the current limits, improving incentives to save and increasing real household disposable incomes. Over 6 million people are expected to benefit from these increases, including over 5 million adults expected to be constrained by the cash ISA limit.

International Monetary Fund: Ukraine

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what contribution the UK will make towards the $17 billion IMF package for Ukraine.

Andrea Leadsom: As a member of the IMF, the UK will be involved in the IMF’s $17 billion programme for Ukraine. The UK’s contribution to the Fund is not public spending and would have no fiscal implications on the UK: it does not add to our debt or deficit. With its preferred creditor status, lending to the IMF is one of the most credit-worthy institutions in the world and no one who has ever provided money to the IMF has ever lost that money.

International Monetary Fund: Ukraine

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the proportion of the $3.2 billion released by the IMF to Ukraine's interim Government that will be spent on servicing debt to Russian gas providers.

Andrea Leadsom: The IMF's programme is intended to put the Ukrainian economy on a more stable footing, part of which involves Ukraine servicing its legitimate debts. The actual repayment of Ukraine's gas debts is a matter for the Government in Kyiv to discuss with their creditors.

Landfill Communities Fund

Ian Austin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the value of Landfill Community Fund grants to projects in (a) Dudley North constituency, (b) Dudley borough, (c) the west midlands and (d) England.

Nicky Morgan: ENTRUST, the regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund (LCF), has provided the value of the LCF in Dudley, the west midlands and England from the inception of the fund to date and for the last financial year. This is set out in the following table. ENTRUST does not have this information broken down by constituency.
	
		
			 £ million 
			  Dudley West Midlands (includes Dudley) England 
			 2013-14 0.142 2.17 67 
			 1996 to date 2.3 24 987 
		
	
	Given the level of unspent funds that the LCF continues to hold, reducing the value of the fund by less than 10% is not expected to impact on communities’ ability to receive LCF funding.

Minimum Wage: Shipping

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times failure to pay the minimum wage has been (a) reported, (b) prosecuted and (c) penalised in the maritime sector since the Equality Act 2010 came into force.

David Gauke: The Government take the enforcement of national minimum wage (NMW) legislation very seriously and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) enforce the NMW legislation on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and has done so since the introduction of NMW in April 1999.
	HMRC investigates all complaints made about employers suspected of not paying the minimum wage, in addition carrying out targeted enforcement where it identifies a high risk of non-payment of NMW across the whole of the UK.
	Since 2006, HMRC started considering prosecution for minimum wage offences. Since then, there have been seven investigations into employers in the water transport sector. None of these were identified as having failed to pay the minimum wage.

Revenue and Customs

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the number of staff required at HM Revenue and Customs in Cumbernauld following his Department's decision to award the mail management contract to the EDM Group.

David Gauke: The timetable for implementation is still being finalised. HMRC does not yet have details of how and when teams currently handling post will be impacted.

Revenue and Customs

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consultation his Department had with HM Revenue and Customs staff prior to awarding the mail management contract to EDM Group.

David Gauke: Regular consultation took place between HMRC and staff representatives throughout the process up to the point the decision was made to go out to tender for a provider of scanning services to HMRC.

Revenue and Customs

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the savings to the public purse provided by the recent award of the mail management contract to the EDM Group.

David Gauke: Over the three-year contract term it is estimated that there is a minimum £8.9 million saving to the public purse when comparing the contract cost with an in-house provision.

Tax Avoidance

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2014, Official Report, column 254W, on tax avoidance, what the (a) total number and (b) timescale involved was in the tenfold increase of people investigated.

David Gauke: In the tax year ended 5 April 2013, HMRC opened 256 investigations into cases where IR35 was identified as the main risk. This is a tenfold increase over the number of investigations opened in the tax year ended 5 April 2011.

Taxation: Self-employed

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people paid their income tax via the use of personal service companies in 2012-13.

David Gauke: HMRC data show the total annual income of individuals by income type, but not which type of business this income derives from. Further, there is no statutory definition of a personal service company. For these reasons, it is not possible to provide a reliable estimate of the number of people who paid income tax via the use of personal service companies.

Welfare Tax Credits

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many single person tax credit claims have been sanctioned or stopped in each constituency in each of the last five years.

Nicky Morgan: HMRC do not hold the requested information and there would be a disproportionate cost attached to obtaining it.

Welfare Tax Credits: Self-employed

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people registered as self-employed claimed tax credits in each of the last five years.

Nicky Morgan: The following table is based on finalised tax credits administrative data for each financial year. The latest data available are for 2011-12.
	
		
			 Thousand 
			 Tax year Number of families in receipt of tax credits containing at least one member identified as self-employed 
			 2007-08 820 
			 2008-09 860 
			 2009-10 910 
			 2010-11 950 
			 2011-12 910

Wind Power: Seas and Oceans

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what funds the Crown Estate received from offshore wind farms in each coastal constituency in each of the last five years.

Nicky Morgan: It is not possible to breakdown the revenue the Crown Estate receives from its offshore activity against constituency boundaries onshore.
	The Crown Estate’s Annual report and accounts is available at:
	http://ar2013.thecrownestate.co.uk/
	and includes a section on Energy and Infrastructure.

Working Tax Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent planning assumption is for the last date on which new claims for working tax credit will be accepted.

Nicky Morgan: Working tax credit is gradually being replaced by universal credit. The current Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) planning assumption is that the universal credit service will be fully available in each part of Great Britain during 2016, having closed down new claims to the legacy benefits that it replaces, including tax credits. HMRC will continue to work closely with the DWP on the specific process and timing for the closure of new claims to working tax credit.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to respond to Question 193089, tabled on 20 March 2014 for answer on 25 March 2014.

Nicky Morgan: I have done so.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Children: Maintenance

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of Child Support Agency cases subject to case closure which have child maintenance arrears based wholly or partly on an interim maintenance assessment; and what steps he is taking to re-evaluate the amount of arrears owed and to inform the non-resident parent and parent with care accordingly.

Steve Webb: We have identified around 1,400 cases subject to case closure which have child maintenance arrears based wholly or partly on an interim maintenance assessment.
	The arrears existing on cases coming up for closure will be reviewed, and where necessary revised, to ensure accuracy. Both parents will be informed of the arrears balance prior to their case closing.

Children: Maintenance

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how often powers in the Child Support Information Regulations 2008 to require suppliers of gas and electricity to (a) provide the Child Support Agency with information to confirm the whereabouts of a non-resident parent and (b) obtain account information to assist enforcement action to recover child maintenance arrears have been used to date.

Steve Webb: The powers available within Section 4(1) of the Child Support Information Regulations 2008 are used as part of the normal trace process available to caseworkers when required. However, this information is not routinely recorded for management information purposes. To provide this would require the creation of new information, which could be completed and appropriately assured only at a disproportionate cost.

Conditions of Employment

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from what date he plans that the refusal of a job on a zero-hours contract will be sanctionable by Jobcentre Plus advisers; and if he will provide protection to claimants with caring responsibilities which limit their work availability.

Esther McVey: JSA claimants are not required to apply for zero-hours contract jobs and therefore will not be sanctioned if they do not apply for such jobs.
	Universal credit means that claimants can accept any offer of work without fear of their benefits or the support they receive from the Jobcentre being negatively affected. They will always be better off in work.
	Under universal credit, if a claimant turns down the offer of employment without good reason a sanction can be applied. Claimants always have the opportunity to provide a good reason.
	Claimants who turn down the offer of employment under a zero-hours contract because of an exclusivity clause will always be considered to have good reason and no sanction will apply.
	Decision makers will also consider whether the job was suitable for the claimant taking into account the specifics of the role, the type of work, any agreed restrictions on hours and the claimant’s particular circumstances, including any caring responsibilities.

Employment Schemes

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he has taken to ensure that unemployed people who volunteer for the Help to Work scheme do not do the same work as offenders on community service orders.

Esther McVey: These are two entirely different schemes and we would expect the requirements of placements for offenders to be very different. The welfare to work companies we have contracted to provide community work placements are experienced at delivering different programmes across different areas of Government.

Employment Schemes: Hampshire

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people on (a) jobseeker's allowance and (b) employment and support allowance have moved from the Work programme to Work Choice in (a) Portsmouth South constituency and (b) Hampshire in the last three years.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not available.

Housing Benefit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how long tenants who move from direct payment of housing support to managed payment because they have eight weeks of rent arrears will be allowed to stay on managed payment before they revert to direct payment.

Steve Webb: It is expected that this arrangement would be reviewed six months after the arrears have been repaid, with a view to the tenant returning to the standard monthly payment, having received additional personal budgeting support where appropriate. All alternative payment arrangements are discretionary and based on individual circumstances and consequently this timescale may vary depending on the capabilities and support needs of the claimant(s).

Independent Living Fund

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what funding will be provided to local authorities after June 2016 to support former Independent Living Fund users.

Michael Penning: The 2013 spending review announced that local authorities and the devolved Administrations will be fully funded to meet their additional responsibilities towards former ILF users in 2015-16. Funding in respect of former ILF users from 2016-17 onwards will be decided in the next spending review.

Independent Living Fund

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of recipients of the Independent Living Fund who will move into residential care following closure of the Fund.

Michael Penning: The potential implications of closing the Independent Living Fund are set out clearly in the Equality Analysis that was published on 6 March alongside the written ministerial statement announcing the closure.

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Pamela Nash: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland, (c) North Lanarkshire and (d) Airdrie and Shotts constituency applied to the jobseeker's allowance hardship regime and were (i) successful and (ii) unsuccessful in each of the last four years for which figures are available.

Esther McVey: These data are not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his most recent estimate is of the date on which the last new claims will be made for jobseeker's allowance.

Esther McVey: The closure of new claims to tax credits will be informed by the universal credit implementation plans. DWP current planning assumptions are that the universal credit service will be available in each part of Great Britain during 2016, having closed down new claims to the legacy benefits it replaced, with the majority of the remaining legacy case load moving to universal credit during 2016 and 2017. Final decisions on these elements of the programme will be informed by the development of the enhanced digital solution.
	We will continue to work closely with HMRC on the specific process and timing for the closure of new claims to working tax credit.

Jobseeker’s Allowance: Hampshire

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Portsmouth South constituency and (b) Hampshire who applied to the jobseeker's allowance hardship regime were (i) successful and (ii) unsuccessful in each of the last three years.

Esther McVey: These data are not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Jobseeker’s Allowance: Veterans

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how armed forces veterans are identified when making an application for jobseeker's allowance; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: Armed forces veterans who claim jobseeker's allowance are identified by the work coach at their initial work search interview.

Pensioners: Income

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate he has made of what constitutes an adequate retirement income; what estimate he has made of the proportion of (a) men and (b) women who will achieve this income; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: In September 2013 we published the “Framework for the analysis of future pension incomes”, which contained details of our modelling of adequate retirement incomes. Recognising that an individual’s income in working life affects the retirement income that they would deem to be adequate, we use replacement rates (the ratio of retirement income to working age income) instead of a single income value to assess adequacy.
	We use the following set of five replacement rate targets as determined in the Pensions Commission’s 2004 report to define adequate replacement rates:
	
		
			 Average annual equivalised gross household earnings between 50 and State Pension Age (2014 earnings terms) Target replacement rate for adequate retirement income (percentage) 
			 Under £12,300 80 
			 £12,300 to £22,700 70 
			 £22,700 to £32,500 67 
			 £32,500 to £52,000 60 
			 Over £52,000 50 
		
	
	To account for income-sharing among couples, we use equivalised household-level income for both working age and retirement incomes.
	Using the Department’s Pensim2 model we look at the simulated replacement rates of individuals reaching state pension age between 2014 and 2059, yielding around 27.9 million individuals in our adequacy measure.
	Our analysis shows that we expect around 56% (around 15.7 million) of those individuals to have an adequate replacement rate. It also shows that around (a) 55% of men and (b) 57% of women in our measure will have an adequate replacement rate.

Respite Care

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which organisations have received how much funding from his Department aimed at supporting access to short breaks and respite provision for children, young people and their families experiencing all types of disadvantage in each of the last five financial years.

Michael Penning: The Department has no schemes of this nature.

Social Security Benefits

Charlie Elphicke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the highest amount is that a single household has been capped as a result of the benefit cap.

Esther McVey: Of the top 10 highest capped households at the end of March 2014, the average capped amount was £607 per week.
	More detailed information on the amount capped is not available as providing this information could identify individuals and would breach data confidentiality. Further information on the number of households capped by the amount capped is found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/benefit-cap-number-of-households-capped-to-january-2014

Social Security Benefits

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress he has made in implementing the Simple Payment initiative; how many people use it; and what steps he has taken to ensure its resilience.

Michael Penning: The Simple Payment service is continuously monitored to ensure satisfactory performance. As a result, 99.82% of transactions over the past six months have completed successfully at the first attempt.
	There are, in total, 137,617 customers registered to use the service.

Social Security Benefits: Fraud

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the creation of a single fraud investigation service on the level of fraud against local authorities.

Esther McVey: The introduction of single fraud investigation service will ensure that all allegations of local authority welfare benefit fraud are investigated appropriately in accordance with a single policy. As such the SFIS project strengthens the approach to investigating and tackling welfare benefit fraud in local authorities.

Unemployment: Young People

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking and what budget he has allocated to help tackle youth unemployment in (a) Barnsley and (b) South Yorkshire.

Esther McVey: The Government are aware of the problems facing young jobseekers in the labour market and have put in place a substantial menu of provision to help them move into work.
	The Youth Contract provides intensive support for all 18 to 24-year-olds. Extra funding is being made available to support the most vulnerable 16 and 17-year-olds not in education, employment or training into learning, an apprenticeship or job with training.
	This comprehensive package of support is enhanced by the Flexible Support Fund, which Jobcentre Plus District managers can use to address locally identified skills needs. Also, the Work programme provides tailored support to those claimants furthest from the labour market.
	Additionally, on 14 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced that funding of £50 million Youth Contract under spend would be made available to cities.
	The Sheffield city region received £5 million to offer intensive adviser and mentor-led support for young people alongside a specialist training programme aimed at equipping young people with the right skills to match local employer needs.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how his Department plans to handle applications for universal credit from people with annual PAYE status.

Esther McVey: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to the written answer I gave him on 17 October 2013, Official Report, column 863W.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support for the payment of mortgage interest will be available for universal credit recipients in low-paid work; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: Under the current system, low paid workers are able to supplement their earnings by claiming support from tax credits. However, tax credits do not make any allowance for mortgage interest payments. Similarly, when universal credit replaces the tax credit system, there will be no entitlement to help with mortgage interest during any period in which the claimant is in paid work.
	However, the earnings rules are far more generous in universal credit. This means that most people, particularly those on low incomes, have a significantly greater incentive to move into work than under the current system.
	The vast majority of people claiming UC will be better off in work, even if they work part-time and even if they receive a low hourly rate of pay. For example, a lone parent receiving the average amount of mortgage interest who takes up a job that pays the national minimum wage will be better off than under the current system if he or she works just seven hours a week.

Vacancies: Internet

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on the Universal Jobmatch programme between (a) April and September 2012, (b) October 2012 and March 2013, (c) April and September 2013, (d) October 2013 and March 2014 and (e) April and September 2014.

Esther McVey: The programme expenditure for Universal Jobmatch over the period April 12 to September 14 includes contractual costs as well as internal costs. Any reporting therefore risks being in breach of commercial in confidence agreement.

Work Programme

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what information his Department holds on (a) the ethnicity of people aged 24 years and under referred to the Work programme and (b) the number of those aged 24 years and under who have (i) been attached to a work service provider, (ii) attained a job outcome payment and (iii) received at least one sustainment payment.

Esther McVey: Statistics on the number of people aged 24 and under who have been referred to the Work programme were identified as being from an ethnic minority background and (i) attached to a Work programme provider, (ii) attained a job outcome and (iii) received at least one sustainment payment can be found at:
	http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/WorkProg/tabtool.html
	Guidance for users is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The Department of Energy and Climate Change has no plans to relocate either (a) staff or (b) offices to Brighton.

Floods: Cumbria

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 30 April 2014, Official Report, columns 712-3W, on floods: Cumbria, when the results of his public consultation will be published; and whether plans are in place for moving the nuclear waste stored at the Drigg Low-Level Waste Repository if the site is deemed at risk.

Michael Fallon: The Environment Agency carried out a public consultation exercise between November 2013 and February 2014 on LLW Repository Ltd’s variation application to dispose of further radioactive waste at the Low Level Waste Repository. Submissions received as part of this exercise are available on the Environment Agency’s Public Register. Responses will be published by the Environment Agency before the end of 2014, as part of a second consultation on a draft decision on the variation application. It is then anticipated that a final decision will be published in the spring of 2015.
	As part of the Environmental Safety Case for the repository, LLW Repository Ltd was required to consider the need to move some or all of the radioactive waste disposed of at the facility given the best current understanding of likely coastal erosion timescales and all relevant technical factors. This work has demonstrated that the risks presented by leaving the radioactive waste in place are consistent with relevant legislation, standards and guidance. The most appropriate option for the environment and people, now and into the future, is not to recover and move the radioactive waste and therefore no plans have been put in place for this.

Fossil Fuels

Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 1 May 2014, Official Report, column 791W, on fossil fuels: imports, how much in thousand tonnes of (a) oil and (b) gas was (i) exported from and (ii) imported to the UK in 2012 and 2013.

Michael Fallon: Data on gas trade in units of thousand tonnes are not available. The standard unit of measurement is GWh.
	In 2012, the UK imported 53,763 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 534,987 GWh of gas and exported 28,535 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 131,711 GWh of gas.
	In 2013, provisional figures show that the UK imported 50,311 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 523,506 GWh of gas and exported 30,382 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 99,582 GWh of gas.

Fracking

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will make an assessment of the British Medical Journal editorial “Public Health England’s draft report on shale gas extraction: Mistaking best practices for actual practices”, published on 17 April 2014; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Health.
	Public Health England (PHE) has considered the British Medical Journal (BMJ) editorial, “Public Health England’s draft report on shale gas extraction: Mistaking best practices for actual practices”, published on 17 April 2014. PHE’s response to the article was published online on 30 April 2014 and can be found at:
	www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g2728?tab=responses
	PHE’s response to the BMJ article states that the conclusion of the report that risks from the process of shale gas extraction will be low if operations are properly run and regulated was a considered judgment. PHE has identified those aspects of operations that are considered to pose the greatest risks. PHE has made a number of recommendations for the control of risks, as have others. If shale gas extraction does take place, PHE will work with regulators to help ensure that environmental monitoring and health surveillance programmes are implemented appropriately. PHE agrees with Kovats
	et al
	(Lancet 383, 757-8; 2014) on the potential for health impact assessments (HIA) to play a role in informing policy and local planning processes, considering all issues associated with shale gas extraction which may affect health, including greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. PHE will seek to support HIAs and will continue to evaluate evidence on health risks associated with shale gas extraction and related technologies.

Fracking

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will discuss the potential health risks of fracking with (a) medical professionals and (b) the Secretary of State for Health; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: Public Health England has carried out a review of the potential health risks from chemical and radiological pollutants from shale gas extraction processes. This review, published in October 2013, took account of available information published up to 2012. It is being updated to take account of new information.
	The review was conducted in response to requests to provide specialist advice to those responsible for public health protection, including local authorities and regulators. The review concluded that the risks to public health from exposure to emissions from shale gas extraction are low if operations are properly run and regulated. In the UK, shale gas developers and operators will be required, through the planning and environmental permitting processes, to satisfy the relevant regulators that their proposals and operations will minimise the potential for pollution and risks to public health.

Renewable Energy

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to his oral contribution of 2 April 2014, Official Report, column 908, on energy price freeze, 
	(1)  if he will place in the Library a copy of Bloomberg's analysis of investment in renewables;
	(2)  what the evidential basis is for the statement that average annual investment in renewables has more than doubled in the current Parliament compared with the previous one.

Michael Fallon: This table shows that average annual investment in renewables has more than doubled in the current Parliament, compared with the previous one.
	
		
			 New Investment in UK Renewable electricity 
			  Total ($ million) 
			 2005 3,292 
			 2006 2,974 
			 2007 4,454 
			 2008 4,511 
			 2009 11,337 
			 2010 9,651 
			 2011 10,996 
		
	
	
		
			 2012 10,339 
			 2013 11,981 
			 Source: Bloomberg Energy Finance 
		
	
	There are a number of sources analysing and interpreting new investment in UK renewable electricity, including DECC’s own analysis. However, data are not always readily comparable owing to differences in methodology, data collection points, timings and market coverage.

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the total cost was of support under the feed-in-tariff for (a) solar, (b) wind, (c) anaerobic digestion, (d) hydro and (e) the sub-15KW wind sector in each of the last three years.

Michael Fallon: The total spending for the feed-in-tariffs (FITs) scheme is set out as follows.
	
		
			  Spending on FITs (£) 
			 2010-11 14,435,324.77 
			 2011-12 150,756,063.58 
			 2012-13 506,328,139 
		
	
	All figures are nominal, and are published in Ofgem's annual report; 2013-14 figures will be published at the end of 2014:
	https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/feed-tariff-fit-scheme/feed-tariff-reports/annual-reports
	We do not publish information on spending on individual technologies within the FITs scheme, nor on spending on individual bands for each technology. More information about deployment levels of the different technologies supported by FITs is available via the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/monthly-small-scale-renewable-deployment

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the effect of changes to tariff levels and degression thresholds outlined in Phase 2B of the feed-in-tariff on manufacturing and employment in the sub-15KW wind sector.

Gregory Barker: As the first degression for wind tariff bands was only introduced on 1 April 2014, it is too early to say what impact it has had on manufacturing and employment in the sub-15kW wind sector. Up to the end of 2013, over 5,150 wind installations had been accredited for FITs, and this pace of deployment has shown no signs of slowing since April 2013. The degression mechanism is very important for the cost control of the FITs scheme and for keeping the cost to the electricity consumer as low as possible.

Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the potential effects of EU state aid rules on the UK feed-in tariff policy framework; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The European Commission adopted new guidelines for Energy and Environmental Aid (EEAG) on 9 April. Existing schemes, such as the feed-in tariff scheme (FITs), are not required to be brought into line with these new guidelines for as long as the relevant scheme remains covered by its existing EU state aid approval. It would need to be brought into line only if we were to introduce a change to the scheme that would, in itself, require state aid notification, as this would be outside the existing approval. If, after consultation on any alterations to FITs, we were to propose such a change, we would consider the trade-offs and risks for the scheme as a whole before reaching a final policy decision.

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the number of people employed in the UK solar PV sector in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013 and (e) 2014.

Gregory Barker: DECC does not hold these data.
	In March the National Solar Centre estimated that the industry employs 13,723 people on a full-time basis.

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the potential contribution of solar farms to the Government's 2020 renewable energy target; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: As set out in the Solar PV Strategy, published in April 2013, solar PV is an important part of the UK’s energy mix. In the EMR delivery plan we estimated a total of between 10 and 12GW of solar photovoltaic across all scales would be installed by 2020. Of this we anticipate that 2.4 to 4GW will be large- scale solar PV installations greater than 5MW.

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the amount of private sector investment committed to large-scale solar PV farm projects in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of an early reduction in Renewables Obligation support on those levels of investment.

Gregory Barker: We do not hold data on the amount of private investment committed to large-scale solar PV projects.

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department is taking to define and safeguard quality in solar farm developments.

Gregory Barker: In April 2014 we published the Solar PV Strategy1, which set out the principle that solar PV should be: appropriately sited, give proper weight to environmental considerations such as landscape and visual impact, heritage and local amenity, and provide opportunities for local communities to influence decisions that affect them and gain some form of community benefit.
	The Solar Trade Association has produced “10 Commitments” for solar farm developers2, and the National Solar Centre has produced its best practice guide for large-scale solar PV development.3 DECC will continue to work with industry through the Strategy Working Group to promote industry best-practice.
	1Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/302049/uk_solar_pv_strategy_part_2.pdf
	2 Available at:
	http://www.solar-trade.org.uk/media/STA%2010%20commitments%20v%2010.pdf
	3Available at:
	http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/other_pdfs/KN5524_Planning_Guidance_reduced.pdf

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect of contracts for difference auctioning on the quality of solar farms.

Gregory Barker: The eligibility criteria for solar farms under contracts for difference are set out in the allocation regulations. Any solar farm must meet these criteria in order to be able to apply for a CfD.
	In April 2014 the Government published the Solar PV Strategy1, which sets out that DECC will continue to work with industry, to promote industry best practice for the development of solar farms.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/302049/uk_solar_pv_strategy_part_2.pdf

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of how much solar farm capacity (a) has been installed in the UK and (b) will be installed (i) in 2015-16 and (ii) by 2020.

Gregory Barker: Energy Trends published in March 2014 show that at the end of 2013 there were 2,698 MW1 of installed capacity across all scales of solar photovoltaic. From January to the end of March 2014, the Renewable Energy Planning Database (REPD), which tracks all renewables projects over 0.01 MW through the planning system (including both building-mounted and ground-mounted solar PV), shows an additional 264.37 MW2 of solar PV installed.
	It is not possible to state precisely how much solar PV will be installed in 2015-16.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/295362/ET_March_2014.PDF
	2 Available at:
	https://restats.decc.gov.uk/app/reporting/decc/monthlyextract

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps his Department has taken to boost the mid-scale 50kW to 5MW solar PV roof sector since December 2013.

Gregory Barker: The Solar PV strategy1, published in April, set out our ambition for solar PV, including a focus on opening up the market for projects on commercial and industrial rooftops.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/302049/uk_solar_pv_strategy_part_2.pdf

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he expects the solar PV permitted development rights consultation referred to in his Department's solar strategy to be published; and if he will make a statement.

Nicholas Boles: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.
	The Department for Communities and Local Government is working with the Department for Energy and Climate Change on the introduction of a permitted development right in England for the installation of rooftop solar panels up to 1 MWp on commercial buildings. This builds on the existing permitted development right for non-domestic properties, which allows the installation of solar panels up to 50 kWp. We expect to consult on this proposal over the summer.

Solar Power

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what the total UK solar capacity is; and what proportion of that capacity is installed on rooftops in the 250kW to 5MW bands;
	(2)  how much solar PV was installed on roof-tops under the Renewables Obligation in (a) 2012, (b) 2013 and (c) 2014 to date.

Gregory Barker: Total UK solar PV capacity at the end of March 2014 was 2,941 MW. It is not currently possible to break down the data to indicate the proportion of that capacity that is installed on rooftops.
	Source:
	Table ET 6.4, available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/energy-trends-section-6-renewables

Tidal Power

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on community engagement in tidal energy developments.

Gregory Barker: DECC Ministers regularly meet Ministers in the Department for Communities and Local Government to discuss a range of issues. As has been the case with successive administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Wind Power

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many turbines of capacity of sub-15kW were installed in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013.

Michael Fallon: The number of sub-15kW wind turbines accredited under the feed-in tariff scheme during 2012 and 2013, were 1,747 and 327 respectively.
	Installations are grouped into years based on their ‘commissioning date’ i.e. the date the technology was physically installed and deemed to be up and running.

Wind Power: Manufacturing Industries

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many manufacturers of sub-15kW wind turbines are based in the UK; and what the value of exports from this sector was in 2013.

Michael Fallon: The Department does not hold this information.
	The renewables industry, including the small and medium wind manufacturers, is an important source of jobs and investment in the UK. In 2013, RenewableUK, the trade association for the onshore wind sector, reported that the UK is home to over 10 small and medium wind manufacturers and that nearly 3,800 sub-15 kW turbines were exported1.
	1 “R-UK Small and Medium Wind Market Report 2013” available at:
	http://www.renewableuk.com/en/publications/index.cfm/Small-and-Medium-Wind-UK-Market-Report-2013

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Africa

Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs who will represent the Government at the World Economic Forum on Africa in Abuja.

Mark Simmonds: No UK Minister was available to attend the World Economic Forum being held in Abuja on 7-9 May. We did propose to send senior officials, but the organisers of the World Economic Forum declined this request.

Australia

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Australian counterpart on the report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on Climate Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability; and what representations he has made to the Australian Government in support of global co-operation to reduce emissions.

Mark Simmonds: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), first discussed climate change with the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka last November, and more recently at their annual bilateral in March. In each conversation, it was agreed that securing a binding, global deal in 2015 was a shared aim and to explore ways to achieve that through partnership.
	While the Foreign Secretary has yet to discuss specifically the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey), has discussed this with the Australian Environment Minister, and they agreed on the need for global action on climate change.

Bangladesh

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Bangladesh on locating the British national Mujibur Rahman Mujib after his disappearance on 4 May 2014.

Hugh Robertson: Our high commission in Dhaka raised the case of missing British national Mr Mujibur Rahman Mujib with the Government of Bangladesh on 7 May. We have urged the Bangladeshi authorities to do everything possible to locate Mr Mujib and his driver, to resolve the circumstances of their disappearance and to keep us informed of all developments in the case. Meanwhile, the British Government are providing consular support to Mr Mujib's family.

Burma

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what economic links there are with Burma; and what the value of (a) exports to and (b) imports from Burma was in the last year for which figures are available.

Hugo Swire: Building a sustainable economy in Burma, including increased responsible international investment, is key to economic growth, alleviating poverty, improving livelihoods and improving stability. As set out in the ‘UK Activities in Burma’ document published on 8 April alongside a written ministerial statement, the Government are working to encourage and support Burma to remove barriers to becoming a stable, prosperous and democratic country with a sustainable economy that benefits all its people and create a positive climate for domestic, international and UK trade and investment.
	We are active in several areas including:
	establishing a UK Trade and Investment office in Burma to provide practical support to British companies;
	establishing a UK Financial Services Task Force to support the development of sound financial structures and products;
	funding two specialist economists from the International Growth Centre to support the Myanmar Development Resource Institute in providing high-quality advice to Government;
	providing £1.1 million to support Burma’s application to the Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative which will help improve the transparency and accountability of the revenues from Burma’s natural resources;
	supporting work to strengthen Burma’s accountancy profession, to tackle financial crime and to increase local community involvement in investment decisions.
	UK exports of goods to Burma in 2013 were worth £44 million (a 243% year on year increase) and imports from Burma were worth £65 million (a 44% year on year increase). The top UK exports were transport equipment and road vehicles while the top imports were clothing.
	In 2012, the last year for which total goods and services figures are available, UK exports of goods and services to Burma were worth £20.8 million and imports from Burma were worth £46 million.

China

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Chinese authorities regarding reports that Christian communities in and around the city of Wenzhou are fearful following attacks on churches and threats made against other Christians.

Hugo Swire: We have continuing concerns about restrictions on freedom of religion and belief in China. We are aware of particular cases such as the demolition of Sanjiang church in Wenzhou and of raids on churches and threats made to Christians.
	We continue to raise our concerns publicly through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy and the quarterly updates to this. We also raise our concerns directly with Chinese officials. We next plan to do so during the forthcoming UK-China Human Rights Dialogue.

Egypt

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Department has had with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, on the imposition of the death penalty on 683 people in Egypt.

William Hague: The Government have discussed this issue with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and we share many of her concerns about the sentences. Mrs Pillay and I made statements on 28 and 29 April respectively expressing concern over the sentences, along with reports that some of the defendants may not have had adequate legal representation. It is the long-standing policy of the Government to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle.

Egypt

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contribution the UK will make towards the EU monitoring mission to Egypt in advance of presidential elections in May 2014.

William Hague: The European Union has deployed an Election Observation Mission (EOM) to Egypt for the presidential elections scheduled on 26 to 27 May 2014, in response to an invitation by the Egyptian authorities. We support this deployment and our embassy in Cairo will contribute three members of staff as short-term observers to the EOM.

Honduras

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the threat to human rights defenders and journalists in Honduras.

Hugo Swire: The Government attach great importance to the support of human rights and democracy around the world. The human rights situation in Honduras is undoubtedly of concern, particularly in regard to human rights defenders and journalists, who have been known to face particular threats. The limited investigative capacity of judicial institutions in Honduras means it is often difficult to determine who is responsible for such crimes. However, as Her Majesty’s ambassador to Honduras set out in a recent statement to mark Press Freedom Day on 3 May, the British Government are working to support the efforts of the Honduran Attorney-General’s Office and other institutions to tackle impunity human rights abuses, including crimes perpetrated against journalists and human rights defenders.

Honduras

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the President of Honduras about human rights abuses in Honduras.

Hugo Swire: The Government have consistently engaged with Honduran authorities on the issue of human rights. Soon after the new President of Honduras took office in January this year, representatives from the British embassy met senior Honduran officials, including the Attorney-General and the Commissioner for Human Rights. Our embassy has since continued this dialogue with the appropriate Honduran authorities, including raising specific cases highlighted by a number of non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Most recently, Her Majesty’s ambassador wrote to the newly appointed Human Rights Ombudsman and the Attorney-General to highlight our ongoing human rights concerns. An official from the Crown Prosecution Service also travelled to Honduras in February to assess whether UK expertise can be used in support of EU work, to develop capacity in tackling impunity for human rights violations and abuses.

Iran

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions his Ministers had with the Iranian Government on the imprisonment of (a) Rasoul Abdollahi, (b) Saeed Abedini, (c) Ebrahim Firozi, (d) Behmain Iranal, (e) Alireza Seyedin, (f) Maryam Naghash-Zargaran, (g) Farshid Fathi and (h) others imprisoned for their religious beliefs in Iran.

Hugh Robertson: We remain deeply concerned about the detention and treatment of all prisoners of conscience in Iran and the ongoing discrimination against Christians and other minority religious groups. We have called publicly for the Iranian Government to end all persecution of individuals on the basis of their faith. The UK’s non-resident chargé d’affaires raised the issue of freedom of religion with the Iranian authorities during his last visit to Iran on 12 March.

Iran

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he had with the Iranian Government on the prosecution of people of the Baha’i faith.

Hugh Robertson: The UK has repeatedly expressed concern at the treatment of the Baha’i community in Iran, including the sentencing of seven Baha’i leaders in Iran to 20 years imprisonment and the regular harassment the community suffers from. We raised the treatment of Baha’is with the UN special rapporteur at the UN Human Rights Council in March 2014 and the UK’s non-resident chargé d’affaires discussed freedom of religion with the Iranian authorities during his last visit to Iran on 12 March. We will continue to call on the Iranian Government to ensure that all their citizens are able to exercise their right to freedom of religion, free from persecution and harassment.

Kenya

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received of the involvement of the Somali group al-Shabaab in attacks in Kenya.

Mark Simmonds: Al-Shabaab issued public threats against Kenya following its military intervention in Somalia in 2011. A number of terrorist attacks in Kenya since then have been attributed to al-Shabaab, including the September 2013 attack on the Westgate shopping centre in which 67 people were killed. We are aware of the media reports that al-Shabaab was behind the recent attacks in Kenya.

Nigeria

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assistance he has offered to the Nigerian authorities to resolve the continued abduction of girls from the north -east of that country.

Mark Simmonds: In the days following the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno State, Nigeria, we have offered our assistance to the highest levels of the Nigerian Government. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), spoke to the Nigerian Foreign Minister on 18 April immediately after the abductions and offered the UK’s assistance.
	On 7 May the Prime Minister spoke to President Jonathan and offered to send a team of UK experts to Abuja. The President accepted and the team, led by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), arrived in Abuja on 9 May. The team will provide expertise in counter-terrorism, counter-insurgency, military mentoring and training, victim support and economic development. Human rights compliance is, and will remain, an essential element of any UK assistance in Nigeria. I visited Nigeria on 14 May, and reiterated our support with President Jonathan.
	We are co-ordinating closely with international partners. An FCO team was in Washington on 5 May for talks with the US on Nigeria. Our expert team in Abuja will be co-ordinating closely with a US team also in Abuja. We are also speaking to the French and are encouraging other EU partners to lend their support. Given Boko Haram’s exploitation of Nigeria’s porous borders and indications that some of the girls may have been taken to Cameroon or Chad, we are engaging with Nigeria’s neighbours.

Nigeria

David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to help find the 230 Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram; and whether the UK will commit military aid to the search effort if required.

Mark Simmonds: Since the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno State, Nigeria, we have been in regular contact with the Nigerian Government to offer our assistance. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), spoke to the Nigerian Foreign Minister on 18 April immediately after the abductions and offered the UK's assistance. The Prime Minister spoke to the Nigerian President on 7 May. The Nigerian President accepted our offer of a team of experts led by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and including Ministry of Defence (MOD), Department for International Development (DFID) and police representatives. The team arrived in Abuja on 9 May and will be talking to the Nigerians to offer advice on how the Nigerians can defeat Boko Haram and bring stability to the north of Nigeria.
	It is too soon to comment on what specific assistance we will give. However, the team will provide expertise in counter-terrorism, counter-insurgency, military mentoring and training, victim support and economic development. Human rights compliance is, and will remain, an essential element of any UK assistance in Nigeria.

Overseas Aid

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department, its executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies have funded or made a contribution towards funding relating to nation branding development in any overseas state or territories in the last 10 years.

Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not directly funded any nation branding development in any overseas states or territories, nor have its executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies. The British Council does not directly fund nation branding but, through its work building trust for the UK internationally, through cultural and educational exchanges for example, it benefits both the UK’s and partner states’ national brands on a reciprocal basis. Information on any co-funded nation branding activities carried out overseas is not held centrally and to collate this would incur disproportionate cost. Activities funded or carried out by an overseas territory Government to promote their own territory is a matter of devolved responsibility.

Overseas Aid

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which nation branding consultancies have been funded or part-funded by his Department to work in overseas states and territories in the last 10 years; and what fees have been paid to each of those consultancies in each year since 2004.

Hugo Swire: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not directly funded any nation branding consultancies to work in overseas states and territories. Information on any part-funded nation branding consultancies working in overseas states and territories is not held centrally and to collate this would incur disproportionate cost.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has, however, previously paid subscription fees for the years 2009 to 2012 to Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index, a US-based market and consumer information organisation which provides an analytical ranking to help measure and manage national reputation. The subscription costs were: for 2012: £30,597.44; for 2011: £29,554.50; for 2010: £31,141.41 and for 2009: £33,960.81.

Qatar

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the Government of Qatar about working conditions for those constructing FIFA World Cup 2022 stadiums.

Hugh Robertson: I raised concerns about migrant workers’ conditions with the Qatari authorities during my visit to Doha on 8-9 January. Our ambassador and other officials have raised the issue on previous occasions and will continue to do so.

Saudi Arabia

Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what representations he has made to the Government of Saudi Arabia concerning reports of the confinement of Saudi Arabian princesses in Jeddah;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with HM Ambassador to Saudi Arabia about reports of the confinement of Saudi Arabian princesses in Jeddah.

Hugh Robertson: The UK has long-standing concerns about the restrictions on women’s rights in Saudi Arabia. These concerns are clearly set out in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Annual Human Rights Report, most recently updated in April 2014. Ministers and officials often raise women’s rights, including the guardianship system, with their Saudi Arabian counterparts, including at the UN and through EU representatives.

Sri Lanka

Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Sri Lanka; what recent representations he has made to the Government of Sri Lanka about the arrest and detention of human rights defenders; and what recent discussions he has had with his Sri Lankan counterpart about the use of that country's Prevention of Terrorism Act.

Hugo Swire: We continue to have serious concerns about respect for human rights in Sri Lanka, in particular continued intimidation and harassment of human rights defenders and activists. We have consistently made clear to the Sri Lankan Government the importance of safeguarding freedom of expression and protecting human rights defenders, and continue to urge the Sri Lankan Government to uphold their international human rights obligations and to ensure that civil society, human rights defenders and activists are allowed the space to act freely.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Human Rights Report for 2013 and the quarterly updates to the report, which are available online, includes Sri Lanka as a ‘Country of Concern’ for human rights and outlines our assessment more fully.
	I made clear to the Sri Lankan Government following the arrest of Ruki Fernando and Father Praveen—who have now been released—that it is important that human rights defenders are not subject to intimidation and have a right to freedom of expression. We are also aware of the arrests of Mrs Jeyakumari Balendran and others in Sri Lanka. Officials at our high commission in Colombo have raised concerns with the Sri Lankan Government, in particular on the lack of clarity around the evidence against the suspects and the charges brought.
	We have previously raised concerns with the Sri Lankan Government about the length of time individuals can be detained without charge under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. On 27 March, the UN Human Rights Council agreed a resolution which calls on the Sri Lankan Government to make progress on human rights issues and to implement Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) recommendations, which include the re-evaluation of detention policies.

Sri Lanka

Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of (a) the Government of Sri Lanka's decision to proscribe a number of Tamil groups and individuals for alleged links to terrorist activities and (b) the effect this will have on the reconciliation process.

Hugo Swire: I am concerned at reports that the Sri Lankan Government have proscribed a number of individuals and Tamil organisations operating outside Sri Lanka. Although we respect the right of the Sri Lankan Government to take appropriate action against individuals and groups where there is clear evidence of their involvement in terrorist activities, our high commissioner to Sri Lanka has made clear to the Sri Lankan Government that proscription should not be used to prevent or stifle the right to freedom of speech, particularly at a time when Sri Lanka’s human rights record is under international scrutiny. We believe that this development is not conducive to a successful reconciliation process and will continue to monitor developments closely.

Ukraine

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with Ukraine's interim Government about the $3.2 billion immediately released by the IMF as part of its support package.

William Hague: I discussed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) package during my visit to Kyiv on 6-7 May, when I met Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsia and the Head of the National Security and Defence Council. We are supportive of the IMF programme for Ukraine and welcome the Ukrainian Government’s commitment to reform.

Vietnam

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what support his Department provides to non-governmental organisations working in Vietnam to combat child trafficking and to help repatriated victims of trafficking.

Hugo Swire: We currently fund a range of projects in Vietnam targeted at raising awareness of and combating modern slavery and human trafficking through victim reintegration programmes. There is a focus on alternative job creation for victims and potential victims of trafficking.
	In particular, our British ambassador opened Compassion House in June 2013, a UK-funded shelter in Lao Cai on the Chinese border for girls who have been trafficked. It is operated by the local government authorities in conjunction with a local non-governmental organisation, Pacific Links Foundation, to provide life skills and vocational training.
	Our embassy also funds the “Capacity Building Activities for Victims of Gender-Based Violence” project which provides support for women and children in Vietnam who have suffered from gender-based violence and the effects of human trafficking.

Vietnam

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Vietnamese counterpart on preventing child trafficking from that country to the UK.

Hugo Swire: The UK has a highly co-operative relationship with the Vietnamese authorities to tackle human trafficking, including of minors, from Vietnam to the UK.
	Our embassy staff in Hanoi engage regularly with the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security and Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, to facilitate visits to the UK to showcase the mechanisms we have in place. Later this month, high-level officials from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs will be visiting the UK Human Trafficking Centre of the National Crime Agency, the Home Office’s Modern Slavery Unit and the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children’s (NSPCC’s) Child Trafficking Advice Centre and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to improve their understanding of the UK’s approach when working with victims of trafficking.
	Equally, the embassy has worked together with local authorities to open Compassion House in June 2013, a UK-funded shelter in Lao Cai on the Chinese border for girls who have been trafficked.

SCOTLAND

Pensioners

Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many people of pensionable age there were in each parliamentary constituency in Scotland at the most recent date for which figures are available.

Alistair Carmichael: The information following is arranged by UK parliamentary constituency.
	
		
			 Constituency Aged 65+ 
			 Aberdeen North 12,983 
			 Aberdeen South 14,123 
			 Airdrie and Shotts 12,923 
			 Angus 17,127 
			 Argyll and Bute 19,487 
		
	
	
		
			 Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock 19,258 
			 Banff and Buchan 16,356 
			 Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk 20,180 
			 Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross 12,654 
			 Central Ayrshire 17,069 
			 Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill 13,775 
			 Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East 13,344 
			 Dumfries and Galloway 21,175 
			 Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale 18,492 
			 Dundee East 16,407 
			 Dundee West 14,357 
			 Dunfermline and West Fife 15,018 
			 East Dunbartonshire 16,838 
			 East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow 17,375 
			 East Lothian 17,911 
			 East Renfrewshire 16,362 
			 Edinburgh East 12,577 
			 Edinburgh North and Leith 12,750 
			 Edinburgh South 13,427 
			 Edinburgh South West 13,364 
			 Edinburgh West 16,712 
			 Falkirk 17,690 
			 Glasgow Central 8,907 
			 Glasgow East 13,738 
			 Glasgow North 7,990 
			 Glasgow North East 13,032 
			 Glasgow North West 13,025 
			 Glasgow South 12,824 
			 Glasgow South West 12,735 
			 Glenrothes 15,450 
			 Gordon 15,582 
			 Inverclyde 14,837 
			 Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey 17,346 
			 Kilmarnock and Loudoun 16,649 
			 Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath 17,637 
			 Lanark and Hamilton East 17,516 
			 Linlithgow and East Falkirk 17,744 
			 Livingston 14,189 
			 Midlothian 14,074 
			 Moray 17,370 
			 Motherwell and Wishaw 14,490 
			 Na h-Eileanan an Iar 6,021 
			 North Ayrshire and Arran 18,939 
			 North East Fife 16,492 
			 Ochil and South Perthshire 18,394 
			 Orkney and Shetland 8,065 
			 Paisley and Renfrewshire North 14,930 
			 Paisley and Renfrewshire South 14,708 
			 Perth and North Perthshire 19,760 
			 Ross, Skye and Lochaber 13,424 
			 Rutherglen and Hamilton West 15,782 
			 Stirling 15,656 
			 West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine 14,336 
			 West Dunbartonshire 14,988 
			 Source: General Register Office for Scotland, December 2013 
		
	
	More information can be found on the following link:
	http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/theme/population/estimates/special-area/ukpc.html

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the main lessons were from the electoral registration dry run for registration levels under individual voter registration amongst (a) black and ethnic minority, (b) young and (c) low paid and unemployed people.

Greg Clark: The evaluation from the Confirmation Dry Run is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-confirming-electors-through-data-matching

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent assessment he has made of the merits of using vehicle registration databases held by the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Authority to increase levels of voter registration as part of his plans for individual electoral registration.

Greg Clark: Officials are currently working with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to pilot the use of data from vehicle registration databases and driver licence data to improve levels of voter registration.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to collate information on the (a) amount spent by local authorities on electoral registration, (b) number of staff employed by local authorities on electoral registration and (c) local authorities with the (i) highest and (ii) lowest levels of electoral registration.

Greg Clark: Following the transition to the individual electoral registration, the Electoral Commission aims to establish a model which can provide detailed information on financial spend by electoral registration officers and returning officers, and the activities the expenditure relates to, including the impact on performance.
	The Office for National Statistics already holds information on those local authorities with the highest and lowest levels of registration.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will consider the merits of ring-fencing funds allocated by his office to local government for the purpose of voter registration. [Official Report, 3 July 2014, Vol. 583, c. 7MC.]

Greg Clark: Both the paper forms and the new online registration channel to be used under individual electoral registration have been designed to meet a wide range of accessibility needs. The Government have no current plans to commission such research, but the Electoral Commission is currently aiming to publish its assessment of registration rates under individual electoral registration in July 2016.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the use of the telephone to confirm continued entitlement to electoral registration; and which local authorities use telephones for that purpose.

Greg Clark: The Electoral Commission collates information on canvass responses (including responses by telephone) as part of its assessment of electoral registration officers’ performance. These data can be found on their website at:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information-by-subject/performance-standards/performance-in-running-electoral-registration

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what information he holds on how much (a) central and (b) local government spent on advertising to promote voter registration in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Greg Clark: This information is not held centrally.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what comparative assessment he has made of the data-matching levels of those electoral registration officers who (a) did and (b) did not use local government data matching in the individual electoral registration dry run.

Greg Clark: All 380 EROs in England, Wales and Scotland took part in the Confirmation Dry Run in 2013 which involved matching their electoral registers against data held by the Department for Work and Pensions. The average match rate was approximately 78%.
	Following this, 138 local authorities conducted data matching against locally held data sources, such as council tax records. On average, this increased these local authorities’ match rates by approximately 7%.
	The full evaluation of the Confirmation Dry Run, including local data matching activity, is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-confirming-electors-through-data-matching

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will extend the carry over of electors from household registration to individual registration from the general election 2015 to the freeze date for the next boundary review in December 2015.

Greg Clark: The Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 provides for those who have not registered under Individual Electoral Registration to be ‘carried forward’ until December 2016, at which point they will be removed from the register if they have not made a successful application to register. The Act contains a provision that allows an order to be made in Parliament in the summer of 2015 that will conclude ‘carry forward’ in December 2015.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which local authorities that have failed one or more Electoral Commission performance indicators for electoral registration did not apply for the additional funding his office has put in place.

Greg Clark: In 2013, five electoral registration officers (EROs) reported that they did not meet performance standard 3, relating to house-to-house inquiries:
	Mid Devon;
	Taunton Deane;
	Torridge;
	West Devon; and
	West Somerset.
	One ERO, Basildon, reported that they did not meet standard 1, relating to information sources.
	The Electoral Commission is in the process of carrying out a detailed analysis of EROs’ electoral registration data from the 2013 canvass, following which it will publish its final assessment of EROs’ performance in 2013.
	No authorities that failed one or more Electoral Commission performance indicators in financial year 2013-14 have applied for the additional funding.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 6 September 2010, Official Report, column 302W, on electoral register, what additional research has been conducted into the reasons for the apparent decline in registration levels and the growth of local and regional variations in electoral registration.

Greg Clark: The Electoral Commission is currently conducting research into the completeness and accuracy of electoral registers, which will be published in summer 2014.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 20 October 2011, Official Report, column 1099W, on electoral register, what proportion of pupils between the ages of 16 and 18 on the National Pupil Database were registered to vote in each year for which data are available.

Greg Clark: The information requested is not held centrally.
	The National Pupil Database does not include information on pupils' eligibility to be registered.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 11 October 2011, Official Report, column 344W, on electoral register: standards, if he will make it his policy to collect information on the proportion of post-primary schools and further education colleges visited by electoral administrators in all parts of the UK.

Greg Clark: The Government have no such plans. They recognise that electoral registration officers are best placed to determine what type of registration activity is likely to prove most effective at a local level.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 11 October 2011, Official Report, column 343W, on electoral register, what steps he has taken to ensure that aspects of good practice in Northern Ireland are adopted elsewhere in the UK.

Greg Clark: This Government have taken on board the lessons of the 2002 introduction of Individual Electoral Registration in Northern Ireland. A number of safeguards are in place for the transition that were not used in 2002. For example, data matching will allow the vast majority of electors to automatically re-register and the transition is being phased over two years to allow those not yet individually registered to vote in the 2015 general election.
	Funding has been made available to all 363 local authorities and valuation joint boards in Great Britain. Electoral registration officers have been encouraged to use this funding to support the delivery of the Rock Enrol! learning resource.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 20 October 2011, Official Report, column 1099W, on electoral register, what the results were of the pilot scheme data matching electoral registers against other data services such as the National Pupil Database.

Greg Clark: Results were published in March 2012 and July 2013 and can be found via these links:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/60723/FINAL-Data-Matching-Evaluation-Report-new.pdf
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/223850/Data_Mining_Evaluation_FULL_Report_FINAL.pdf

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent assessment he has made of the effect of levels of expenditure of electoral registration measures on levels of registration.

Greg Clark: The Government have made no recent assessment of the effect of levels of expenditure of electoral registration measures on levels of registration.
	The Government announced on 5 February 2014 that five national organisations and every local authority in Great Britain would be sharing £4.2 million funding aimed at maximising the rate of voter registration as part of the transition to Individual Electoral Registration in 2014.
	They have been provided with guidance to support them in evaluating the success of activity delivered through this funding. Government will continue to work closely with all funding recipients in order to monitor the outcomes.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 6 June 2011, Official Report, columns 625-6W, on the electoral register, what assessment he has made of the effect of the ending of the Participation Fund on voter registration levels before the introduction of individual electoral registration.

Greg Clark: As part of the transition to Individual Electoral Registration, the Electoral Commission has been responsible for conducting research into the completeness and accuracy of the register. Its previous report, following the conclusion of the Participation Fund, can be found at:
	http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/145366/Great-Britains-electoral-registers-2011.pdf
	The Electoral Commission will be publishing a further assessment of the completeness and accuracy of the register in summer 2014.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 14 June 2010, Official Report, column 324W, on the electoral register, who is responsible for assessing the performance of the Electoral Commission in (a) monitoring and (b) increasing the electoral registration rates of individual local authorities.

Greg Clark: The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act (2000) established the Electoral Commission as independent of Government. It is accountable to Parliament through the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much was spent by the Government on encouraging people to register to vote in each year since 2010.

Greg Clark: The Government spent £54,708 in 2010-11 on promoting electoral registration, voting and awareness of election processes through the Participation Fund. The fund was subsequently abolished because of lack of demand from local authorities.
	The Government announced a new approach on 5 February 2014, making £4.2 million available to all 363 local authorities and valuation joint boards in Great Britain and five national organisations to support the cost of activities for maximising registration as part of the transition to individual electoral registration.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent assessment he has made of the compatibility of software used by local authorities for electoral registration and that used by (a) the Electoral Commission and (b) his own Department.

Greg Clark: In developing the digital service which supports the implementation of individual electoral registration (IER), the Government have ensured the compatibility of election management system (EMS) software used by local authorities and valuation joint boards with the mechanisms which will manage the transfer and matching of data. This has been achieved by developing an interface which standardises the communication of data between EMS software and the IER digital service. This has been fully and successfully tested.
	The Electoral Commission has no direct responsibility for the processing or determination of registration applications and therefore has no requirement to interact with the digital service.

Electoral Register: Learning Disability

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate his Department has made of the proportion and number of voters with learning disabilities who (a) register to vote and (b) vote.

Greg Clark: The Government have made no such estimate.
	No record is made of disability when registering to vote or when voting.

Electoral Registration Officers

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what estimate he has made of the number of electoral registration officers who have not fulfilled their statutory responsibilities in each of the last 10 years.

Greg Clark: The Government have made no such estimate.
	Since 2008, Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have been subject to performance standards set and monitored by the Electoral Commission. The Electoral Commission publishes its annual reports on ERO performance on its website.

Electoral Registration Officers

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of how many and what proportion of electoral registration officers (EROs) conducted data-matching activities for the purpose of improving individual electoral registration; and what steps he can take against EROs who did not conduct such data-matching activities.

Greg Clark: As individual electoral registration (IER) will be introduced from 10 June 2014, an assessment has not yet been made.
	In line with current practice, once IER is in place, the performance of electoral registration officers (EROs) will be monitored through the performance standards of the Electoral Commission.

Electoral Registration Officers

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the answer of 20 July 2010, Official Report, column 298W, on electoral register, how many electoral registration officers have been convicted of an offence related to failure to take sufficient steps to register electors under section 9A of the Electoral Registration Act 2006.

Greg Clark: The Government are not aware of any electoral registration officer being convicted of an offence related to their statutory duty to take all reasonable steps to maintain the completeness and accuracy of the register.

Electoral Registration Officers

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what (a) central Government and (b) local government databases electoral registration officers may use in undertaking their registration functions.

Greg Clark: The introduction of individual electoral registration (IER) will require electoral registration officers (EROs) to confirm existing electors and verify all new applicants to register to vote against data held by the Department of Work and Pensions and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. In addition, the Government are currently exploring using data held by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to further enhance the IER data-matching processes as well as providing EROs with information which may help them identify unregistered eligible people.
	Under existing legislation EROs are entitled to inspect any data held by the local authority which appointed them, including data held by private companies acting on behalf of the authority, in order to check the validity of applications to register and to identify potential new electors. The data sources which are available to EROs will vary with some EROs appointed by unitary authorities having access to a greater range of data than those appointed by district councils; the Government have introduced secondary legislation to address this issue by allowing district councils to request data from their county council.

Electorate

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps his Department has taken to improve registration rates and voter turnout of (a) visually impaired voters and (b) voters with learning difficulties.

Greg Clark: Electoral law requires returning officers to take account of the needs of people with disabilities by making polling stations and voting accessible.
	In June 2014, the Government will be introducing an online facility for registration which will support further accessibility options for those with particular needs. User testing of paper forms has allowed their design to take into account the requirements of those with disabilities.
	The Cabinet Office has also funded the Royal Mencap Society to create educational resources for people with a learning disability and to develop a model for one-to-one support for families, carers and others to encourage and enable registering to vote.

Local Enterprise Partnerships

Nick Brown: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what criteria he will use to assess local enterprise partnerships strategic economic plans for funding under the Local Growth Deal.

Greg Clark: The criteria the Government will be using to assess Strategic Economic Plans and bids for the Local Growth Fund were published in July 2013 and are available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/growth-deals-initial-guidance-for-local-enterprise-partnerships

Official Hospitality

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much has been spent on hospitality by his office in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

Nicholas Clegg: The information requested is not held centrally.

Opinion Polls

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much was spent by his office on polling or public opinion research exercises in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14; and what the purpose of polling was in each such case and what was polled.

Nicholas Clegg: My office has not commissioned polling or public opinion research.

EDUCATION

Academies

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) primary and (b) secondary schools had academy status in England and Wales at the latest date for which figures are available.

Edward Timpson: The information requested can be found at:
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/open-academies-and-academy-projects-in-development
	Education in Wales is a devolved matter and is the responsibility of the Welsh Government.

Academies

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many local authority schools have become academies since 2010.

Edward Timpson: As of 1 May 2014, 3,688 local authority schools have become academies since 2010.

Academies

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how much his Department has paid in legal fees since 2010 on the transfer of title deeds of a local authority schools becoming academies;
	(2)  how many title deeds of local authority schools have been transferred to academies operated by private companies since 2010;
	(3)  what the average value is of the title deed of a local authority school that becomes an academy.

Edward Timpson: When community schools convert to academies, the freehold is retained by the local authority and a lease is granted to the academy trust.
	There are strict rules protecting publicly-funded land used by academies, regardless of who holds the freehold. This is set out in published guidance, which is available at:
	www.gov.uk/government/publications/protection-of-school-playing-fields-and-public-land-advice
	A copy of the guidance has been placed in the House Library.
	The Department for Education does not hold information about the average value of land used for academies, or about the legal costs associated with establishing leasehold or freehold arrangements.
	Academies are run by academy trusts, which are charities limited by guarantee—academies are not operated by private companies.

Children: Databases

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what information-sharing systems his Department recommends agencies to use in respect of sharing information regarding vulnerable children and children at risk.

Edward Timpson: The Government believe it is for local areas to determine the most appropriate way to record and share information to meet local needs.

Children: Day Care

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of the 20 per cent most disadvantaged two year olds who are currently taking up their free childcare place.

Elizabeth Truss: In February 2014, local authorities reported that around 103,000 two-year-olds were already accessing a funded early learning place. Of these, around 95,000 were from the 20% most disadvantaged cohort, which represents 73%.

Custody

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to ensure that fathers have appropriate access to or custody of their children following separation or divorce in cases where there is no risk to the child.

Edward Timpson: The Government recognise that a father’s role in his child’s life is a very important one and legislation in the Children and Families Act 2014 reflects the importance of children having a continuing relationship with both of their parents following family separation, as long as it is safe and in the child’s best interests.
	We are also strengthening the way in which breaches of child arrangement orders are handled. Cases which are breached within the first 12 months of an order being made will in future return to court quickly and, wherever possible, to the judge who made the original order. Courts will also be able to make full use of powers to direct a parent who is in breach of an order to participate in an activity, for example a parenting programme, to address their behaviour.

Families: Advisory Services

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 411W, on families: advisory services, how many couples were eligible for the relationship support trial (a) overall and (b) in each pilot area; how many couples took part in each such trial area; and what the underspend in the project has been spent on.

Edward Timpson: Information about this trial is available in the Evaluation report, which can be found at:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/262849/DFE-_RR311.pdf
	The underspend on the allocated budget for the trial has been used to meet other priorities.

Financial Services: Curriculum

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he has taken to include financial capability education in the national curriculum; and what guidance his Department has issued on such education.

Elizabeth Truss: The new mathematics curriculum will ensure that all young people leave school with an understanding of the mathematics skills needed for personal finance.
	For the first time financial literacy will also be a compulsory part of citizenship for 11 to 16-year-olds from September 2014. Pupils will learn the importance of budgeting, sound management of money, credit and debt, as well as understanding of different financial services and products.
	The new programmes of study for mathematics and citizenship make it clear what pupils should learn, including developing their use of formal mathematical knowledge to interpret and solve problems, including financial mathematics.

Free Schools

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the average length of time between an application for free school status being made and a successful applicant school opening; and what plans he has to reduce the time taken.

Edward Timpson: In cases where there is no existing school, the average length of time between an application for a free school being made and a brand new school opening is approximately 18 months. There are instances where a free school is able to open in a shorter amount of time, for example, in the case of an existing independent school that wants to join the state sector.

Free Schools

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  how many applications for free school status from applicants which already have premises have been refused;
	(2)  how many applications for free school status for which the Church of England has agreed to provide school premises have been (a) approved and (b) rejected.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education does not hold the information in the form requested.
	Whether applicants already have premises for their proposed school, and who provides those premises, are not, on their own, material factors in the decision to approve or reject a free school application. Rather, that decision is based principally on an assessment of the need for the school, the strength of the applicants' education plans and their ability to deliver a school that is financially viable and likely to be judged “good” or “outstanding” by Ofsted.

Free Schools

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make it his policy to give free schools more flexibility on requirements relating to (a) the involvement of volunteers and (b) provision of flexi-school places.

Edward Timpson: Volunteers in free schools, like maintained schools, can work alongside paid staff members to offer a range of skills and experience that can enhance pupils’ learning. We encourage skilled members of the community to take up a range of voluntary roles in schools from being governors to listening to children read. The Government have reformed child protection policies to remove bureaucracy and enable managers to use their judgment about the checks and supervision required for each individual depending on their circumstances.
	The free school programme encourages innovation and the decision to offer flexi-school places or how to deploy volunteers is one for individual head teachers. However, the free school criteria require all applicants to meet rigorous standards, including demonstrating how they would ensure a high quality education for every pupil and outlining a sustainable staffing structure.

Local Safeguarding Children Boards

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what funding his Department provides for Local Safeguarding Children Boards.

Edward Timpson: Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) are funded by contributions from the local authority, primary care trust, police and other agencies, with the largest contribution coming from the local authority. It is important that agencies work together to agree budgets locally and prioritise spending in response to local needs and issues.
	The Department for Education provided the Association of Independent LSCB Chairs with funding of £240,000 between September 2012 and March 2014 to support the leadership of LSCBs in ensuring the effectiveness of local safeguarding arrangements. We will provide it with a further £130,000 in this financial year as it moves towards self-sustainability.

Pupil Exclusions: Bullying

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make it his Department's policy to record the number of pupils who are (a) suspended and (b) expelled for cyber-bullying.

Elizabeth Truss: We have no plans to collect specific data on the number of pupils receiving fixed period exclusions or permanent exclusions for cyber-bullying.
	The Department for Education does not distinguish between different forms of bullying. The Department already collects data on exclusions for bullying, which would include cyber-bullying, as set out in the reply given to the hon. Member on 28 April 2014, Official Report, column 558W, on pupil exclusions: bullying.

Respite Care

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which organisations have received how much funding from his Department aimed at supporting access to short breaks and respite provision for children, young people and their families experiencing all types of disadvantage in each of the last five financial years.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education does not directly fund organisations to deliver short breaks and respite services for disadvantaged children, young people and their families; this is done at local authority level.
	In the case of disabled children and young people however, the Department for Education has made available to local authorities £800 million to invest in short breaks services between April 2011 and March 2015, through unringfenced grants. In 2011-12 and 2012-13, an additional £40 million of capital funding per annum was made available to local authorities to invest in short breaks equipment and infrastructure, also in unringfenced grants. It has been for local authorities to decide how to use this funding to provide the short breaks provision for disabled children that is needed locally and to support access to it.
	While the Department does not directly fund providers of short breaks for disabled children, it has funded a number of organisations over the last five financial years to help increase access to such provision and to improve its quality.
	A table setting out details of the funding has been placed in the House Library.

Sixth Form Education

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when his Department will publish guidance for sixth-form colleges that wish to convert to become 16 to 19 academies.

Edward Timpson: Sixth-form colleges are classified as private sector institutions and already benefit from the freedoms that academies enjoy. For this reason, the Department for Education has no plans to publish guidance for sixth-form colleges that wish to convert to become 16 to 19 academies.

Special Educational Needs: Hearing Impairment

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the recent study by City University, London and the Nuffield Foundation of deaf children in the education system; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education has not made an assessment of the recent study by City University, London and the Nuffield Foundation of deaf children in the education system. The study helpfully considers ways and strategies to assist teachers identify reading problems and dyslexia for deaf children. It is for schools and professionals working with deaf children to consider the significance of the findings and how it informs their practice in identifying and supporting children with hearing loss.
	Through the Children and Families Act 2014, the Government aim to improve support for children with special educational needs and disability (SEND) including deaf children. It also includes support for teachers and other school staff to gain the knowledge and skills to support pupils with SEN and disabilities.
	The new SEND Code of Practice due to come into force in September, will set out clear guidance for schools on the process for appropriate identification, assessment, monitoring and securing further support for all children and young people with SEN and disabilities, including those with sensory impairments.

CABINET OFFICE

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Francis Maude: Staffing is kept under review, but I have no plans to move Cabinet Office staff to Brighton.

Carpets

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was spent by the Department on purchasing or maintaining carpets in buildings owned by his Department in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

Francis Maude: Information requested is not held centrally.

Christmas

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was spent by (a) his Department and (b) the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on Christmas decorations in (i) 2012-13 and (ii) 2013-14.

Francis Maude: Nothing.

Civil Servants: Pay

Christopher Chope: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office on what basis the Government calculate entitlement to holiday pay for civil servants.

Francis Maude: This is a matter delegated to individual Civil Service Departments and agencies under the Civil Service Management Code (CSMC).

Colorectal Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people (a) under 45, (b) between 45 and 60, (c) over 60 and (d) in total have been diagnosed with bowel cancer in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people (a) under 45, (b) between 45 and 60, (c) over 60 and (d) in total have been diagnosed with bowel cancer in each of the last five years.
	The latest available figures for newly diagnosed cases of cancer (incidence) are for the year 2011. Table 1 provides the number of newly diagnosed cases of colorectal cancer, for the years 2007 to 2011, for ages (a) 0 to 44 years, (b) 45 to 60 years, (c) 61 years and above and (d) all ages.
	The latest published figures on cancer incidence for England are available on the ONS website:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/vsob1/cancer-statistics-registrations--england--series-mb1-/index.html
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of newly diagnosed cases of colorectal cancer1,2, England3, 2007-11 
			 Age group 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 
			 0-44 858 898 909 907 1,039 
			 45-60 4,798 4,784 4,779 4,909 5,133 
			 61+ 25,902 26,964 27,559 27,713 27,872 
			 All ages 31,558 32,646 33,247 33,529 34,044 
			 1 Colorectal cancer was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (1CD-10) codes. 2 Cancer incidence figures are based on newly diagnosed cases registered in each calendar year. 3 Figures are based on boundaries as of February 2014 and exclude non-residents. Source: Office for National Statistics.

Credit Unions

Mike Kane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which Government Departments offer payroll deduction for staff wishing to save with a credit union.

Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) on 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 65W.

Death

Luciana Berger: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the biggest cause of preventable premature deaths in people up to the age of 60 years old.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated May 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the biggest cause of preventable premature deaths in people up to the age of 60 years old.
	In 2012 (the latest year available), the leading cause of preventable premature death in England and Wales for persons up to the age of 60 was ischaemic heart disease. The total number of deaths from this cause for males and females combined was 5,735.
	Figures for avoidable mortality in England and Wales are published annually on the ONS website at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/subnational-health4/avoidable-mortality-in-england-and-wales/index.html
	Trends in mortality by causes considered preventable (preventable mortality) or amenable to healthcare (amenable mortality), which are subsets of total avoidable mortality are also presented.

Death: Weather

Chris Heaton-Harris: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how many people died from cold-related causes in the winter of (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14;
	(2)  how many people died from heat-related causes in the summer of (a) 2012 and (b) 2013.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated May 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions asking the Secretary of State for Health:
	1. How many people have died from cold-related causes in the winter of (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14 (198092)
	2. How many people died from heat-related causes in the summer of (a) 2012 and (b) 2013 (198095).
	There are no official definitions of ‘cold-related’ and ‘heat-related’ causes of death.
	National Statistics estimates of excess winter deaths are calculated annually, and are based on the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July).
	Table 1 provides the number of excess winter deaths that occurred in England and Wales from 2008/9 to 2012/13 (the latest figures available). Figures on the number of excess winter deaths in the winter of 2013-14 will be available in November 2014.
	The majority of excess winter deaths are from respiratory and circulatory diseases, but it is not possible to say whether these deaths were specifically cold-related.
	More information on excess winter mortality and the causes contributing to excess winter deaths can be found in the excess winter mortality bulletin:
	www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/subnational-health2/excess-winter-mortality-in-england-and-wales/index.html
	In addition, Public Health England use ONS death registration data to monitor excess weekly mortality. More information on this can be found at:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/229819/Excess_winter_mortality_2012.pdf
	Estimates of the excess deaths during a summer heat wave are only calculated when temperatures remain abnormally high over a sustained period. The most severe heat wave of recent times occurred in August 2003, and was associated with significant excess mortality. Summer 2012 was relatively cool, though high temperatures occurred on 19 August in the East and South East of England. There were several days in July 2013 when high temperatures triggered a health heat wave alert in one or more regions. However, analysis by Public Health England showed that no significant excess in weekly all-cause mortality was seen during the heat wave periods in 2012 and 2013. Public Health England publish a heat wave plan containing further details on heat wave alert thresholds:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/201039/Heatwave-Main_Plan-2013.pdf
	
		
			 Table 1: Excess winter deaths, England and Wales, deaths occurring in 2008-09 to 2012-131, 2, 3 ,4 
			 Persons (number) 
			  Excess winter deaths (EWD) EWD Index5 
			 2008-09 36,450 23.7 
			 2009-10 25,810 16.8 
			 2010-11 26,080 16.9 
			 2011-12 24,200 15.5 
			 2012-13 31,100 19.6 
			 1 Estimates of excess winter deaths are based on the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July). 2 Figures are based on deaths occurring in each month. 3 Figures for 2008-09 to 2011-12 are final, figures for 2012-13 are provisional. Final figures are rounded to the nearest 10, provisional figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 4 Figures for England and Wales include deaths of non-residents. 5 The excess winter mortality index is calculated as the excess winter deaths divided by the average non-winter deaths, expressed as a percentage.

Disciplinary Proceedings

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff who were suspended remained on his Department’s payroll in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14; and on what date the official suspension commenced in each such case.

Francis Maude: In line with the practice of previous Administrations, exact numbers are not usually disclosed to protect individual privacy when numbers are five or fewer.
	No staff in my Department were suspended and remained on payroll in 2012-13.
	Five or fewer civil servants in my Department were suspended on full pay in the year 2013-14.

Domestic Violence

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the proportion of the (a) male and (b) female population who have experienced (i) all partner abuse and (ii) violent partner abuse aged (A) 16 to 19, (B) 20 to 24, (C) 25 to 34, (D) 35 to 44, (E) 45 to 54, (F) 55 to 59 and (G) over 59 years old.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate has been made of the proportion of the (a) male and (b) female population who have experienced (i) all partner abuse and (ii) violent partner abuse aged (A) 16 to 19, (B) 20 to 24, (C) 25 to 34, (D) 35 to 44, (E) 45 to 54, (F) 55 to 59 and (G) over 59 years old.
	Estimates of the proportion of adults resident in households who experience partner abuse are produced from the Crime Survey for England and Wales. The survey definition of partner abuse includes emotional or financial abuse, threats or use of physical force against the person by a current or former partner.
	These estimates are sourced from a module that is completed in private by the respondent and this section of the survey is only asked of adults aged 16 to 59. Therefore, figures are not available for those over 59 years old. A measure of violent partner abuse is not available; however, respondents are asked whether they experienced threats to hurt the respondent, or someone close to them, or force.
	Table 1 provides the proportion of adults aged 16 to 59 who were victims of partner abuse in the year ending March 2013 (the latest year available), by age and sex.
	
		
			 Percentage of adults aged 16 to 59 who were victims of partner abuse in the last year, by age and sex, 2012-13 CSEW, England and Wales, adults aged 16 to 59 
			 Percentage victims once or more 
			  Any partner abuse1 Partner abuse threats or force (non-sexual) Unweighted base2 
			  Men Women Men Women Men Women 
			 16-19 3.6 7.2 1.3 2.8 259 245 
			 20-24 5.2 9.2 3.2 4.5 339 438 
			 25-34 3.7 5.7 1.5 2.8 924 1248 
			 35-44 2.6 4.9 1.1 2.4 1,070 1,400 
			 45-54 2.4 3.4 1.2 1.4 1,197 1,340 
		
	
	
		
			 55-59 1.5 2.2 0.4 0.7 542 605 
			 1 Any partner abuse includes stalking and sexual offences. 2 Unweighted base refers to the number of people interviewed in the specified group. Bases given are for any partner abuse; bases for other measures will be similar. Source: Crime Survey for England and Wales, Office for National Statistics.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the electoral registration rate was in each year since 1997 in the 100 parliamentary constituencies which have had the largest decrease in the number of electors on the register from the date of the local boundary review to the present.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker, dated May 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the electoral registration rate was in each year since 1997 in the 100 parliamentary constituencies which have had the largest decrease in the number of electors on the register from the date of the local boundary review to the present (197935).
	ONS does not hold the data required to answer this question.
	Local boundary reviews are undertaken by the four Boundary Commissions for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The latest full review, the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster Constituencies, was completed in 2005 in Scotland, 2006 in Wales and 2007 in England and Northern Ireland. As there is no UK consistent date for local boundary reviews it is not possible to calculate the 100 parliamentary constituencies with the largest decrease in electors between the date of the local boundary review and the present time.
	Additionally, as the new constituencies for England, Wales and Northern Ireland did not come into force until the May 2010 General Election, ONS did not collect electoral data for all of these constituencies until 2009 and therefore cannot supply electoral registration rates for years prior to that date for these areas.
	A further issue relates to the calculation of the electoral registration rate. ONS can only provide an approximation of this figure calculated from the number of people who were registered to vote in parliamentary elections as a percentage of the estimated resident population aged 18 and over. The latest date for which this approximation can be produced is 2012. The latest electoral statistics are for 2013; however the 2013 population estimates required for the denominator are not due to be published until June 2014.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the answer of 7 June 2010, Official Report, columns 75-76W, on electoral register, what his most recent estimate is of the electoral registration rate for each region of the UK.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker, dated May 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the most recent estimate is of the electoral registration rate for each region of the UK (197950).
	Table 1 shows the number of people who were registered to vote in parliamentary elections as a percentage of the estimated resident population aged 18 and over, for the regions of England and UK constituent countries in 2012. This is the latest year for which both electoral statistics and population data are available.
	This percentage is the nearest approximation to the percentage registered to vote that can be provided but is not an electoral registration rate. This is because the estimated resident population is not the same as the population who are eligible to vote. The population eligible to vote in parliamentary elections includes British Citizens or qualifying Commonwealth citizens resident overseas (who are not included in the UK resident population) and excludes foreign citizens from outside the British Commonwealth and Republic of Ireland resident within the UK (who are included in the estimated resident population).
	In addition, figures for the registered electorate may be inflated because people who have more than one address may register in more than one place (e.g. students may register at parental and term-time addresses) and electoral registration officers vary in how quickly they remove people from the registers after they have moved away from an area or died. This can affect the comparability of figures across parliamentary constituencies and potentially regions.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of persons registered to vote as a percentage of resident population aged 18 and over for the regions of England and UK constituent countries, 2012 
			 Area  Percentage rate 
			 England  91 
			    
			  North East 95 
			  North West 94 
			  Yorkshire and the Humber 92 
			  East Midlands 93 
			  West Midlands 94 
			  East 93 
			  London 81 
			  South East 92 
			  South West 94 
			    
			 Wales  93 
			    
			 Scotland  92 
			    
			 Northern Ireland  88 
			 Notes: 1. The rates have been calculated using the mid-2012 population estimates of those aged 18 and over, and the number of people registered to vote (excluding attainers aged under 18) in parliamentary elections on 1 December 2012. 2. The UK electoral statistics are for 1 December 2012 and were published on 28 February 2013. They are available on the ONS website at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pop-estimate/electoral-statistics-for-uk/2012/index.html 3. The latest UK population estimates are for 30 June 2012 and were published on 8 August 2013. They are available on the ONS website at: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/pop-estimate/population-estimates-for-uk--england-and-wales--scotland-and-northern-ireland/mid-2011-and-mid-2012/index.html Source: 1. Office for National Statistics. 2. National Records of Scotland. 3. Electoral Office for Northern Ireland.

Health Services

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much (a) his Department and (b) the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister spent on a wellbeing strategy in (i) 2012-13 and (ii) 2013-14.

Francis Maude: The Deputy Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.
	In 2010 the Office for National Statistics established a Measuring National Wellbeing Programme to look at wellbeing across the UK. The Cabinet Office is supporting this with a wellbeing policy programme across Government.
	The costs of the programme are met from existing departmental budgets. Details on staffing are published through my Department’s organogram, on gov.uk

ICT

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how much was spent on providing (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers, (c) senior civil servants and (d) all other officials in his Department with (i) iPhones and (ii) iPads in (A) 2012-13 and (B) 2013-14;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of (a) digital and (b) Agile skill in (i) his Department and (ii) other Government Departments; and if he will make it his policy to report on digital skills in departmental reporting plans;
	(3)  how much was spent maintaining his Department's official website in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14;
	(4)  how much has been spent on the Digital Services Framework in each month to date; and what proportion of such spending was with small and medium-sized enterprises;
	(5)  how many Agile coach positions there are in his Department; and how many such posts are filled by (a) permanent and (b) contract staff.

Nick Hurd: At the time of the last general election this country was spending more than almost any other country in the developed world on ICT but the quality of the services and technology offered to civil servants and to the public was hardly impressive. Departments were—and in many cases are—burdened with legacy IT equipment which is not appropriate for a modern workplace. In addition there was a long-standing shortage of digital skills.
	After the general election, the Cabinet Office launched the new Government Digital Service to support Departments in digitising public services and to redesign our online offering to the public.
	Prior to August 2010, £27,000 was spent on hosting the Cabinet Office site (as well as other agency sites). In August of that year, we switched to using cloud-based services. For 2012-13, £2,623 was spent maintaining the Cabinet Office website. In February 2013 Cabinet Office joined gov.uk. The creation of gov.uk saved £42 million in 2012-13 and £50 million estimated savings for 2013-14 for gov.uk from closing down Directgov and BusinessLink.
	The Capabilities Plan, which is refreshed annually, reports on digital skills across the civil service. The Cabinet Office publishes Quarterly Progress Reports against the Government Digital Strategy which covers digital capability, as does the Government Digital Strategy 2013 Annual Report. All of these are readily available online.
	Prior to 2010 agile methods were not required. The Government Digital by Default Service Standard requires new or redesigned digital services to be developed using agile methods. Compliance is ensured through cross-Government IT spending controls. Prior to the last general election there was no cross-Government IT spending controls. These helped saved £500 million for taxpayers in 2012-13 alone, contributing to an unprecedented £10 billion of efficiency savings in that year. All of this could have been initiated prior to 2010. There are currently five agile coach positions in Cabinet Office.
	Prior to the last general election there was no central monitoring of spend with SMEs. Various bureaucratic procurement practices militated against SMEs and resulted in a playing field which was biased against SMEs. The Digital Services framework went live in November 2013. 83% of the suppliers are SMEs. Of the nine competitions so far awarded five have gone to SMEs—this is 30% by value.
	Under an IT contract signed in 2009, Cabinet Office staff IT costs around £7,000 per user per annum. We want staff to have IT equipment which actually suits their needs to allow everyone to work effectively and drive up productivity. As part of that we will consider giving staff equipment including tablets and mobile devices when there is an appropriate business need. For further details I refer the hon. Member to HC Deb, 7 March 2013, c1140W.

Infant Mortality

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment has been made of the effect of inequality on child mortality rates in the UK.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker, dated May 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the effect of inequality on child mortality rates in the UK.
	There are a number of ways that an assessment of the effect of inequality on child mortality rates could be undertaken. Previous analyses include investigations of differences in infant mortality by (1) the socioeconomic status of the parents, (2) an area-based indicator of deprivation, (3) a combination of both, also taking other factors that impact on child mortality into account, such as birth weight and multiplicity.
	Table 1 provides the number of infant deaths and the infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births by the most advantaged National Statistics Socio-economic Classification (NS-SEC) of the parents for infant deaths occurring in England and Wales in 2012 (the latest year available). Comparable figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland are not readily available.
	Table 2 provides the number of deaths of children aged between one and 15 years by the most advantaged NS-SEC of the parents for deaths occurring in 2012 (the latest year available). Rates cannot be calculated because figures for child populations by NS-SEC are not readily available. Comparable figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland are not readily available.
	Child mortality rates by area deprivation are not readily available, so could only be provided at disproportionate cost. However, the results of a multivariate analysis of infant death in England and Wales in 2005–06, with a focus on socio-economic status and deprivation are available on the ONS website at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/hsq/health-statistics-quarterly/no--42--summer-2009/index.html
	Figures for child mortality in England and Wales are published annually on the ONS website at:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/vsob1/child-mortality-statistics--childhood--infant-and-perinatal/index.html
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of infant deaths and infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births by parents’ national statistics socio-economic classification, England and Wales, deaths occurring in 2012 
			 Numbers and rate per 1,000 live births 
			   Number Rate 
			 All  2,857 3.9 
			 1.1 Large employers and higher managerial occupations 34 1.4 
			 1.2 Higher professional occupations 241 2.3 
			 2 Lower managerial and professional occupations 467 2.3 
			 3 Intermediate occupations 203 2.3 
			 4 Small employers and own account workers 308 4.8 
			 5 Lower supervisory and technical occupations 255 4.7 
			 6 Semi-routine occupations 393 5.0 
			 7 Routine occupations 405 7.5 
			 8-9 Never worked or long term unemployed, or not classified elsewhere 199 3.4 
			 Notes: 1. Figures include the deaths of non-residents. 2. Infant deaths are deaths under one year. 3. Figures are on deaths occurring, rather than registered in each calendar year. 4. The breakdowns of socio-economic classification do not add to the 'all figures'—see section 2.13 in Child Mortality Statistics Metadata for details: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/health-and-life-events/child-mortality-statistics-metadata--january-2014.pdf 5. Due to the small number of deaths in category 8 (Never worked or long term unemployed), the totals for categories 8 and 9 (Not classified elsewhere) have been combined. Source: Office for National Statistics. 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Number of deaths of children between one and 15 years by national statistics socio-economic classification, England and Wales, deaths occurring in 2012 
			 Number 
			 NS-SEC  Deaths 
			 All  882 
			 1.1 Large employers and higher managerial occupations 28 
			 1.2 Higher professional occupations 91 
			 2 Lower managerial and professional occupations 178 
			 3 Intermediate occupations 72 
			 4 Small employers and own account workers 107 
			 5 Lower supervisory and technical occupations 42 
			 6 Semi-routine occupations 145 
			 7 Routine occupations 68 
			 8-9 Never worked or long term unemployed, or not classified elsewhere 151 
			 Notes: 1. Figures include the deaths of non-residents. 2. Children are defined as those aged over one year and less than 16 years. 3. Figures are on deaths occurring, rather than registered in each calendar year. 4. Due to the small number of deaths in category 8 (Never worked or long term unemployed), the totals for categories 8 and 9 (Not classified elsewhere) have been combined. Source: Office for National Statistics

Job Creation

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many new jobs have been created in (a) 2011, (b) 2012 and (c) 2013 in (i) Barnsley Central constituency, (ii) Yorkshire and the Humber and (iii) England.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated May 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many new jobs have been created in (a) 2011, (b) 2012 and (c) 2013 in (i) Barnsley central constituency, (ii) Yorkshire and The Humber and (iii) England. (198130)
	Information regarding the number of new jobs created is not available. As an alternative, estimates relating to the net changes in the number of people in employment have been provided. The ONS compiles Labour Market Statistics for areas below the UK following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions using the Annual Population Survey (APS).
	Table 1 shows the number and net change of people in employment resident in the requested geographies. These estimates are compiled from APS interviews held during the period January 2013 to December 2013 and the 12 month periods ending in December in each year since 2010.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. A guide to the quality of the estimates is given in the table.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of people in employment and change on previous period 
			 Thousand 
			  Barnsley Central Yorkshire and the Humber England 
			 12 months ending December: Level Change on year Level Change on year Level Change on year 
			 2010 36 — 2,407 — 24,303 — 
			 2011 36 0 2,396 -12 24,392 88 
			 2012 37 1 2,442 47 24,712 321 
			 20131 ***37 0 *2,485 43 *25,093 381 
			 1 Coefficients of Variation have been calculated for the latest period as an indication of the quality of the estimates. See Guide to Quality following. Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220. Key: * 0 ≤ CV<5%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered precise ** 5 ≤ CV <10%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered reasonably precise *** 10 ≤ CV <20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered acceptable **** CV ≤ 20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes CV = Coefficient of Variation Source: Annual Population Survey

Legal Costs

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what legal fees have been paid by his Department in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14; and for what purpose payment was made in each case.

Francis Maude: My Department publishes details of spend over £25,000 on gov.uk.

Non-departmental Public Bodies

Simon Kirby: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many quangos have been abolished since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Hurd: The Government have already reduced the number of public bodies by more than 280 and 185 bodies have been abolished.
	This is the largest restructuring of public bodies in a generation, making the landscape smaller, more accountable and transparent, and offering better value for money to the public.

Official Hospitality

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was spent by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on tea and biscuits in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

Francis Maude: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minster is an integral part of my Department.
	The information requested is not held centrally.

Police: Public Opinion

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the level of public satisfaction in relation to the police when dealing with reports of (a) burglaries, (b) theft, (c) fraud, (d) non-domestic violence and (e) sexual offences.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated May 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking about levels of public satisfaction in relation to the police when dealing with reports of (a) burglaries; (b) theft; (c) fraud; (d) non-domestic violence; and (e) sexual offences.
	The Crime Survey for England and Wales collects data on victim satisfaction with the police, for incidents experienced by adults aged 16 and over in the 12 months prior to the interview, that have been dealt with by the police. Latest data for the year ending December 2013 indicate that 81% of victims of burglary were satisfied with the police handling of the matter; 78% of victims of theft offences were satisfied; and 67% of victims of non-domestic violent offences were satisfied.
	Latest available Crime Survey for England and Wales data on victim satisfaction with the police, for incidents of serious sexual assaults experienced since the age of 16 relate to those interviewed in the year ending March 2012. These indicate that 63% of victims aged 16 to 59 of serious sexual assault thought that the police had been helpful in their handling of the matter. These estimates are sourced from a self-completion module of the survey that is completed in private by the respondent and is only asked every other year of adults aged 16 to 59. Data are not available for all sexual offences.
	In respect of the data on serious sexual assaults, when comparing with other crime types, it is possible that there may be a difference in levels of satisfaction reported by respondents that is attributable to the different modes of response provided; face-to-face interview or self-completion. Caution should therefore be applied when making such comparisons.
	The Crime Survey for England and Wales does not collect information on victim satisfaction with the police in relation to incidents of fraud.

Training

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many away days his Department held in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14; and (i) what cost was incurred and (ii) who was in attendance at each such day.

Francis Maude: The information requested is not held centrally.

Visual Impairment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what guidance his Department has given across Government on steps to improve communications with the visually impaired.

Nick Hurd: I refer the hon. Member to the Office for Disability Issues’ publication, Fulfilling Potential. The Cabinet Office’s Government Digital Service is working with Departments to digitise public services. Our assisted digital approach will ensure that these services serve the needs of all users, including people with a visual impairment.

Women’s Business Council

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many times Ministers have met the Women's Business Council flexible working champion John Timpson in the last three years.

Francis Maude: Details of external ministerial meetings are published at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications

Written Questions: Government Responses

Hilary Benn: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office when he plans to answer question 196793, tabled on 25 April 2014 for answer on 29 April 2014.

Francis Maude: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 4W. This was answered within the set timescale.

DEFENCE

Al-Sweady Public Inquiry

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the potential cost to the public purse of the Al-Sweady public inquiry.

Philip Hammond: The Al-Sweady inquiry has cost the public purse £28.4 million to 31 March 2014. The potential cost of the inquiry to its completion is £31.1 million.
	This includes costs for inquiry personnel, all legal and professional services, including paralegals, legal investigators, translation services, costs of the inquiry hearing rooms and associated utilities, IT, and expenses incurred in obtaining witness evidence.

Scotland

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effects on the defence and security of Scotland of being part of the UK.

Andrew Murrison: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave earlier today to my hon. Friend the Member for Central Devon (Mel Stride) and my hon. Friend the Member for Winchester (Steve Brine).

Afghanistan

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what funds from the defence budget are allocated for mental health care for veterans returning from Afghanistan.

Anna Soubry: Mental health care and support is provided for all serving armed forces personnel, both regulars and reserve, and resources are not specifically designated for a particular operation. Because of the many ways in which mental health care is provided and funded, it is not possible to provide a cost figure that covers all the numerous care streams, which may include treatment by GPs in primary care facilities, out-patient treatment in military Departments of Community Mental Health, and in-patient care in specialist NHS units.
	Responsibility for the delivery of health care to ex-service personnel rests with the NHS and devolved Administrations. As part of the Government’s 2011 mental health strategy, No Health Without Mental Health, over £7 million in additional funding has been made available over four years to help ensure that ex-service personnel with mental health problems also get the very best care.

Afghanistan

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to increase the number of Apache helicopter pilots for deployment in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.

Mark Francois: The final deployment of Apache helicopters to Helmand has sufficient pilots and crews to undertake the required tasks.
	Sufficient personnel will continue to be trained to ensure future tasks can be met.

Armed Forces

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the findings of the Armed Forces & Society survey produced by Lord Ashcroft.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence was grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Ashcroft for conducting what proved to be a very useful survey of the attitudes of the public and the armed forces towards each other. While there were many positive findings, of particular concern was the perception among a majority of the public that veterans would have physical or mental problems as a result of service. Lord Ashcroft described this as “not only untrue, but damaging”.
	The 2012 survey provided valuable insight into the relationship between the armed forces and the nation they serve. This relationship is at the heart of the Armed Forces Covenant, which we published in May 2011. A great deal has been achieved through this mechanism in the last few years across a wide range of areas, including health care, accommodation, education, and welfare.
	We will go on looking at what more we can do for our armed forces, their families, and veterans, to ensure that they continue to receive the recognition they deserve, and if necessary, whatever help they may require.

Armed Forces Covenant

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will provide details of the projects supported by the Armed Forces Covenant (LIBOR) fund since its inception; and how much funding has been given to each of those projects.

Anna Soubry: The £35 million LIBOR fund has now closed with the majority of the money being allocated in support of a total of 97 projects. A copy of the document detailing those projects and the funding they have received is as follows. A small sum is being held back for contingency purposes.
	Armed Forces Covenant LIBOR Fund—Successful projects
	The importance of the covenant to the Government was highlighted by the decision of the Chancellor to transfer £35 million from fines levied on the banks for attempting to manipulate LIBOR to the MOD for use in supporting the armed forces community.
	The aim of the fund is to support the two principles of the Armed Forces Covenant:
	that members of the armed forces community should not face disadvantage in comparison to other citizens;
	that special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such as the injured and the bereaved.
	Over three tranches of LIBOR funding 97 successful projects have received a total of nearly £35 million to support their work. A summary of the successful bids can be found in this spreadsheet.
	
		
			 LIBOR fund value £35,000,000.00 Number of projects Number of unique orgs 
			 Tranche One agreed bids £7,229,900.00 16 12 
			 Tranche Two agreed bids £15,539,869.53 57 54 
			 Tranche Three agreed bids £12,083,910.89 24 21 
			 Total spend £34,853,680.42 97 81

Armed Forces: Cadets

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel were in the Army Cadets in Northern Ireland on 1 January 2014.

Anna Soubry: On 1 January 2014 there were 1,422 members of the Army Cadet Force and 598 members of the Army Combined Cadet Force in Northern Ireland.
	In addition there were 397 adult volunteers.

Armed Forces: Cadets

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel were in the Sea Cadets in Northern Ireland on 1 January 2014.

Anna Soubry: On 1 January 2014 there were 257 Sea Cadets in Northern Ireland, 22 of whom were Royal Marine Cadets.
	In addition there were 157 adult volunteers.

Bomb Disposal: Shoeburyness

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that East Beach in Shoeburyness is surveyed for any unexploded ordnance and that remedial works are carried out as a matter of urgency;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of (a) the economic effect on and (b) changes in tourism revenue in Southend as a result of the closure of East Beach in Shoeburyness for his Department to survey for unexploded ordnance;
	(3)  what the timescale is for his Department to (a) survey East Beach in Shoeburyness for unexploded ordnance and (b) carry out remedial works;
	(4)  how long his Department expects East Beach in Shoeburyness to be closed.

Anna Soubry: East Beach is managed by Southend-on-Sea borough council under a licence agreement with the Ministry of Defence (MOD). The decision to close the beach was made by the council and it will be for it to determine when to re-open it. As such, no estimates have been made by the MOD about the economic effect of the council’s decision to the local economy.
	A MOD survey of East Beach will assist in the formulation of a risk management plan that will focus mitigation work on those areas of the beach at greatest risk. It is too early to say what mitigation work will be required, when it will be carried out, and how long it will take to complete.

Chief of Defence Materiel

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the current contract for the post of Chief of Defence Materiel ends; and if he will make it his policy that the post of Chief Executive of Defence Equipment and Support be no longer merged with this post at that time.

Philip Dunne: The post of Chief of Defence Materiel has been merged with that of Chief Executive of Defence Equipment and Support and therefore no longer exists as a separate post. A competition will be held for the Chief Executive of Defence Equipment and Support in late 2014 in time for the current incumbent's contract end date on 3 January 2015.

Defence Equipment and Support

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to question 187339 of 11 February 2014, where each vacancy is located; and what the role of each position is.

Philip Dunne: Safety-Critical posts are fielded across the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) organisation in a number of areas. The role of these posts is defined in DE&S policy as having specified safety-related, decision-making responsibilities and accountabilities, and must be filled by people competent to make such decisions. Should a post become vacant, priority is given to recruitment action. Until the vacancy is filled, the post responsibilities are either transferred to other competent people or, to ensure safety, related activities cease.
	Safety-Critical post data are reviewed on a monthly basis and as at 1 April 2014 there were 97 vacant Safety-Critical posts in DE&S out of a total of 1,321. The number of Safety-Critical posts and vacancies will change regularly to reflect project requirements and as the result of staff turnover. Current vacancies are located as follows:
	
		
			 DE&S organisational domain DE&S operating centre Total number of Safety-Critical posts Number of vacant Safety-Critical posts 
			 Maritime Ships 210 11 
			  Subs 156 6 
			  Naval Authority Group 47 9 
			     
			 Air Air Support 199 20 
			  Combat Air 216 16 
			     
			 Land Land Equipment 114 6 
			  Weapons 154 12 
			  Joint Support Chain/Inventory Management 13 1 
			  Logistics Commodities and Services 14 1 
			     
			 Joint Helicopters 161 11 
			  ISTAR 29 3 
			     
			 Corporate HR 3 0 
			  Tech 4 0 
			  Finance 1 1 
			 Total  1,321 97

Employment Agencies

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which five companies were used most often to provide temporary workers for his Department in the last financial year; and how much in agency fees was paid to each of them.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence uses a process called “manpower substitution” to engage temporary staff at agreed fixed rates on a national basis through a number of contracts. Manpower substitutes are employed for up to 11 months to fill vacant, funded posts. The majority are brought in to fill medical and dental requirements at military medical centres to cover for military positions that are vacant due to deployment into operational theatre. This enables the medical services to continue to provide the best possible care to members of the armed forces.
	The five companies most frequently used by the Ministry of Defence in financial year 2013-14 to provide temporary workers, and the associated fees paid to each, are presented in the following table:
	
		
			 Company Type of worker Number of Temporary Workers Fees Paid (£ million) 
			 HoneyBee Medical and Dental 790 3.46 
			 CastleRock Ltd Medical and Dental 490 2.61 
			 Capita Resourcing Interim Professionals 320 2.07 
			 Hayes Medical and Dental 190 0.59 
			 Reed Clerical and Admin 160 0.11 
		
	
	The figures provided for Capita Resourcing cover the period from April 2013 to March 2014. All other data cover the period April 2013 to February 2014. Data are extracted from the MOD’s centralised Manpower Substitution Service database and do not include any localised arrangements that individual Top Level Budget holders may have with other companies.

Joint Forces Command

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the current establishment is of Joint Forces Command.

Anna Soubry: There are around 11,000 members of the armed forces and around 7,150 UK based civil servants and locally employed civilians in Joint Forces Command.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence who authorises the public release of photographs of aircraft that are intercepted during Quick Reaction Alert flights.

Mark Francois: Photographs are routinely taken during Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) interceptions. There is strong public and media interest in the RAF Quick Reaction Alert deterrent capability. MOD policy is to release a limited amount of non-sensitive information on QRA launches, sometimes including photographs. This provides the public with strong examples of how the RAF is able to respond to this kind of incident. It also provides public awareness of the RAF’s ability to defend the UK through the effectiveness of its air defences and to maintain the full deterrence value of the QRA mission. Media inquiries regarding QRA launches also often include requests for photographs.
	Consequently, RAF Operations Staff in coordination with MOD officials, including the MOD Directorate of Media and Communications, will occasionally consider these photographs for public release.
	Photographs of a recent QRA mission were released on 25 April 2014. The previous release of photographs of intercepted aircraft from a recent mission was in March 2010; additionally for other QRA information releases in the last three years, MOD has utilised stock images from the Defence Image Library.

Military Aircraft

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions (a) photographs have been taken of intercepted aircraft on Quick Reaction Alert flights and (b) such photographs have been released to the public in each of the last three years.

Mark Francois: Photographs are routinely taken during Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) interceptions. There is strong public and media interest in the RAF Quick Reaction Alert deterrent capability. MOD policy is to release a limited amount of non-sensitive information on QRA launches, sometimes including photographs. This provides the public with strong examples of how the RAF is able to respond to this kind of incident. It also provides public awareness of the RAF’s ability to defend the UK through the effectiveness of its air defences and to maintain the full deterrence value of the QRA mission. Media enquiries regarding QRA launches also often include requests for photographs.
	Consequently, RAF Operations Staff in coordination with MOD officials, including the MOD Directorate of Media and Communications, will occasionally consider these photographs for public release.
	Photographs of a recent QRA mission were released on 25 April 2014. The previous release of photographs of intercepted aircraft from a recent mission was in March 2010; additionally for other QRA information releases in the last three years, MOD has utilised stock images from the Defence Image Library.

Northern Ireland

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he expects Ministers of his Department to visit Northern Ireland establishments between now and the General Election in 2015.

Anna Soubry: There are, at present, no planned visits by Ministry of Defence Ministers to establishments in Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State for Defence intends that his previously planned visit of 20 March 2014 to Northern Ireland, which had to be postponed, will be rescheduled.

Nuclear Reactors

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many nuclear-qualified suitably qualified and experienced personnel have been required by his Department in each of the last three years; and how many such posts were vacant in each such year in each location.

Philip Dunne: The following tables summarise the number of civilian nuclear suitably qualified and experienced personnel (NSQEP) posts and the number of NSQEP vacancies by location:
	
		
			 Number 
			  2011-12 (as at 31 March 2012) 2012-13 (as at 31 March 2013) 2013-14 (as at 31 March 2014) 
			 Requirement for NSQEP personnel 532 532 562 
			 Number of vacant NSQEP posts 29 53 70 
			     
			 Location of vacant posts    
			 Abbey Wood, Bristol 21 48 63 
			 Clyde 3 2 2 
			 Portsmouth 1 0 1 
			 Devonport, Plymouth 3 2 3 
		
	
	
		
			 Barrow-in-Furness 1 1 1 
		
	
	A recruitment programme has recently been undertaken to fill the existing vacancies, most of which fall within the level 1 (awareness) category, and posts are now being filled. None of the existing vacancies are in posts categorised as safety critical, and the vacancies have not impacted upon the Department’s ability to deliver the Defence Nuclear Programme safely.
	The following table summarises the number of military nuclear suitably qualified and experienced personnel (NSQEP) posts and the number of NSQEP vacancies by location:
	
		
			 Number 
			  2011-12 (as at 1 January 2012) 2012-13 (as at 1 February 2013) 2013-14 (as at 1 February 2014) 
			  Officers Ratings Officers Ratings Officers Ratings 
			 Requirement for NSQEP personnel 266 856 238 808 244 804 
			 Number of vacant NSQEP posts 19 105 12 68 16 79 
			        
			 Location of vacant posts       
			 Abbey Wood, Bristol 7 1 1 0 4 0 
			 Clyde 1 41 1 20 2 22 
			 Portsmouth 0 8 0 1 0 3 
			 Devonport, Plymouth 1 7 1 2 1 2 
			 London 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Barrow-in-Furness 0 2 0 3 1 0 
			 Sea—Disposal 3 13 0 8 1 2 
			 Sea—Sea Training 3 0 1 2 2 0 
			 Sea—Build and Upkeep 1 6 1 0 0 6 
			 Sea—SSN and SSBN (Upkeep) 2 3 2 9 4 10 
			 Sea—Platform 1 24 5 23 1 34 
		
	
	None of the existing vacancies are in posts categorised as safety critical. No submarine would go to sea without the required complement of NSQEP, and the vacancies have not impacted upon the Department’s ability to deliver the Defence Nuclear Programme safely.

VE Day: Anniversaries

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of VE Day in 2015.

Anna Soubry: The 70th Anniversaries of VE Day and VJ Day will have significant resonance in the UK and the allied nations. No specific plans have yet been developed, but this is something that we will be turning our attention to in the coming months.

Veterans

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many veterans (a) were and (b) were not contacted by the Veterans Information Service one year after their departure from the armed forces in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013.

Anna Soubry: The number of veterans who were contacted/not contacted by the Veterans Information Service in 2012 and 2013 is:
	
		
			  12012 22013 
			 Contacted 19,445 6,178 
			 Not Contacted 3,544 951 
			 1 From May 2012 until December 2012. 2 From January 2013 until March 2013. (Contact is initiated one year after discharge.) 
		
	
	This information is not available by year prior to May 2012. However, I can confirm that 56,653 veterans discharged between 1 September 2009 and 30 April 2012 have been contacted and 5,996 have not.

Veterans: Mortgages

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many veterans have bought a house through the Forces Help to Buy Scheme since its establishment in April 2014.

Anna Soubry: The Forces Help to Buy Scheme launched on 1 April 2014 is designed to assist members of the armed forces in purchasing a home. The scheme is for serving personnel, but those being made redundant will be eligible.
	For details on the support available to veterans, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 28 April 2014, Official Report, column 442W, to my hon. Friend the Member for Windsor (Adam Afriyie).

War Pensions: Mesothelioma

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people have been awarded a war disablement pension for mesothelioma since 1996.

Anna Soubry: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 7 May 2014, Official Report, columns 165-166W. The Ministry of Defence is unable to provide the number of individuals awarded a war disablement pension (WDP) for mesothelioma since 1996 in the time scale requested. However, as at 31 March 2013, 50 individuals were in receipt of a WDP for a recorded condition of mesothelioma.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he will answer question 188564 tabled on 13 February 2014 for answer on 24 February 2014, and question 188387 tabled on 12 February 2014 for answer on 26 February 2014.

Philip Dunne: I responded to the hon. Member today.

HEALTH

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many complaints about abortion clinics were made to the Care Quality Commission in the last 12 months.

Jane Ellison: This information can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Responsibility for investigating specific complaints about providers lies with other bodies; however the Care Quality Commission uses comments and correspondence from the public to inform its inspection and other regulatory functions.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answers of 12 March 2014, Official Report, column 238W, on abortion, and 7 April 2014, Official Report, column 31W, on abortion, if he will make it his policy that his Department collects data on the number of (a) neonatal deaths following a legal termination of pregnancy, (b) foetuses that show signs of life following an attempted termination and (c) such foetuses registered as live births; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Department has no plans to collect these data.

Ambulance Services

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by how much each ambulance trust in England underspent or overspent their budget in each year since 2010.

Jane Ellison: National health service trusts and foundation trusts do not receive funding directly from the Department of Health and therefore do not have budgets against which they underspend. They are semi-autonomous organisations whose income derives from the provision of services to NHS England and clinical commissioning groups, through what might be described as trading activity.
	The NHS trust and foundation trust regime has similarities to the regime for Government Trading Funds, where expenditure for Government activity is met from income from third parties, rather than direct funding from resources voted to the Department.
	The equivalent ‘underspend’ would be where the trust spends less than the income it receives as a result of its activity. This is referred to as a ‘surplus’.
	The following table summarises the year-end surpluses for each NHS ambulance trust in the financial year 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13.
	
		
			 £000 
			  2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Isle of Wight NHS Trust1 — — — 543 
			 East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust 2,016 467 2,409 30 
			 East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust 757 2,364 3,121 4,175 
			 London Ambulance Service NHS Trust 1,425 1,002 2,751 262 
			 North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust2 4,736 3,120 2,312 2,340 
			 North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust 1,041 2,065 1,558 2,707 
			 South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust3 602 1,383 2,049 1,560 
			 South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust4 1,130 3,153 3,486 3,055 
			 South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust5 511 890 1,645 36,934 
			 West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust 255 99 925 5,797 
			 Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust 518 237 428 2,223 
			 1 Isle of Wight NHS Trust established April 2012. 2 North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust—FT status established November 2011. 2009-10 to 2011-12 figures—as NHS Trust. 3 South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust—FT status established March 2012. 2009-10 to 2011-12 figures—as NHS Trust. 4 South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust—FT status established March 2011. 2009-10 to 2010-11—as NHS Trust. 5 South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust—FT status established March 2011. 2009-10 to 2010-11—as NHS Trust.

Ambulance Services: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average ambulance response time for each category of call was in Warrington in each year since 2010.

Jane Ellison: The information is not available in the format requested. The hon. Member may wish to contact North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust, who may hold data at a more local level.
	The following table shows median ambulance response times for North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust in each month for which figures are available:
	
		
			 North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust 
			 Median response times for Category A calls 
			  Response times (minutes) 
			 April 2011 4.2 
			 May 2011 5.0 
			 June 2011 5.2 
			 July 2011 5.0 
			 August 2011 4.7 
			 September 2011 4.8 
			 October 2011 4.9 
			 November 2011 4.9 
			 December 2011 5.0 
			 January 2012 4.8 
			 February 2012 5.1 
			 March 2012 5.0 
			 April 2012 5.6 
			 May 2012 5.7 
			 June 2012 5.1 
			 July 2012 5.1 
			 August 2012 5.2 
			 September 2012 5.3 
			 October 2012 5.4 
			 November 2012 5.4 
			 December 2012 5.7 
			 January 2013 5.5 
			 February 2013 5.6 
			 March 2013 5.6 
			 April 2013 5.8 
			 May 2013 5.4 
			 June 2013 5.5 
			 July 2013 5.8 
			 August 2013 5.7 
			 September 2013 6.1 
			 October 2013 6.0 
			 November 2013 6.1 
			 December 2013 6.1 
			 January 2014 5.8 
			 February 2014 6.1 
			 March 2014 6.1 
			 Note: Response time shown is for Category A (Red) calls. These are defined as those that are the result of immediately life threatening incidents. Source: Ambulance quality indicators, NHS England

Ambulance Services: Yorkshire and the Humber

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what ambulance response times were in each local authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jane Ellison: This information is not available in the format requested. The hon. Member may wish to contact Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, who may hold data at a more local level.
	The following table shows median ambulance response times for Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust in the latest three months for which figures are available.
	
		
			 Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust 
			  Median response times (minutes) for Category A calls 
			 January 2014 5.5 
			 February 2014 5.7 
			 March 2014 5.6 
			 Note: Response time shown is for Category A (Red) calls. These are defined as those that are the result of immediately life threatening incidents. Source: Ambulance quality indicators, NHS England

Ankle Replacements

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had NHS ankle replacements in each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: This information is not available in the format requested.
	In the following table, we have provided information concerning the number of finished consultant episodes (FCEs)1 with a main or secondary procedure2 of ankle replacement3 for the year 2008-09 to 2012-134. It should be noted that this is not a count of people as the same person may have had more than one FCE within the same time period.
	
		
			  FCEs 
			 2008-09 560 
			 2009-10 608 
			 2010-11 617 
			 2011-12 591 
			 2012-13 582 
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. Notes: 1 A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. 2 The number of episodes where the procedure (or intervention) was recorded in any of the 24 (12 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and four prior to 2002-03) procedure fields in a Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) record. A record is only included once in each count, even if the procedure is recorded in more than one procedure field of the record. Note that more procedures are carried out than episodes with a main or secondary procedure. 3 Coding used includes total ankle replacement and hemiarthroplasty of the ankle joint. 4 HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, changes in activity may be due to changes in the provision of care. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre.

British Pregnancy Advisory Service

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the British Pregnancy Advisory Service about its leaflet, Britain's Abortion Law: what it says and why.

Jane Ellison: The Department has made its position on abortion, including the illegality of abortion on the grounds of gender alone, clear to all providers, including the British Pregnancy Advisory Service. The Department will do so again in the forthcoming further guidance.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to improve access to social care assessments for people with ME or chronic fatigue syndrome.

Norman Lamb: The Care Bill will require local authorities to provide information and advice on how to access care and support in their area including assessments.
	The Bill will place local authorities under a duty to assess any adult who appears to have needs for care and support, whatever their level of need. The assessment will look at the person's needs and outcomes they want to achieve, and the person must be involved throughout the process. Authorities will have to ensure that anyone who is undertaking an assessment is appropriately trained to do so, and that where the assessor is not experienced in the condition of the person they are assessing, they must consult someone who is.
	These measures will ensure that the person needing care has an effective assessment carried out by an appropriately trained assessor.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will bring forward proposals for regulations to ensure that ME and chronic fatigue syndrome are included in all pre- and post-registration training of (a) GPs and (b) other health care professionals;
	(2)  what steps his Department plans to take to improve information and support for GPs regarding ME or chronic fatigue syndrome; and if he will take steps to improve access to specialist services for people with those conditions.

Norman Lamb: In 2007, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) produced the clinical guidance, ‘Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (or encephalopathy): Diagnosis and management of CFS/ME in adults and children’. This guidance set out best practice on the diagnosis, treatment care and support of children and adults with CFS/ME. Information on CFS/ME diagnosis and treatment can also be accessed via the NHS Evidence and NICE clinical knowledge summaries websites.
	The content and standard of health care professional training is the responsibility of regulators, such as the General Medical Council, which are independent statutory bodies. They have the general function of promoting high standards of education, working with the Royal Colleges, and co-ordinating all stages of education to ensure that students and newly-qualified professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes essential for professional practice.
	The Government have mandated Health Education England (HEE) to provide national leadership on education, training and work force development in the national health service. HEE is responsible for ensuring that the future work force has the right numbers, skills, values and behaviours to meet patients’ needs today and tomorrow, and will work with stakeholders to influence training curricula as appropriate.

Community Hospitals

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on the future of community hospitals; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: A search of the Department’s ministerial correspondence database has identified no recent representations on the future of community hospitals. This Government believe the national health service should improve discharge from acute hospitals and increase access to care and treatment in the community.

Health Professions: Regulation

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the Law Commission's draft Bill on the regulation of health and social care professionals.

Daniel Poulter: The Department worked closely with the Law Commission on its review of legislation governing regulation of health care professionals, and after almost three years of review, consultation and development the Law Commission published its recommendations, along with a draft Bill on 2 April 2014.
	This work will help us make sure the system is fit for the future and continues to protect patients. The Department is considering the Law Commission’s proposals with great interest and is working closely with the regulatory bodies and the Professional Standards Authority to inform our response to the Law Commission, which we will publish in due course.

Health Professions: Regulation

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on the inclusion of a Bill on modernisation of the regulation of nurses and midwives in the Queen's Speech.

Daniel Poulter: We have not received representations on the inclusion of a Bill on modernisation of the regulation of nurses and midwives. However, the Department has received representations on taking forward the Law Commission’s work from a number of organisations, including:
	professional regulatory bodies;
	patient safety groups;
	the Professional Standards Authority; and
	medical professional associations.

Health Services: Arts

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the savings to the NHS arising from arts-based interventions.

Norman Lamb: No current assessment has been made of savings to the NHS arising from arts-based interventions.

Heart Diseases: Young People

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent steps he has taken to raise awareness of the conditions that can lead to young sudden cardiac death and sudden death syndrome.

Jane Ellison: The UK National Screening Committee advises Ministers and the national health service in all four countries about all aspects of screening policy and supports implementation. It is currently reviewing the evidence for screening young people between the ages of 12 to 39 years for the major causes of sudden cardiac death. A public consultation will open shortly.
	NHS England is working with the Chief Coroner to discuss what the coronial system can do to help reduce sudden cardiac death in the young. As a result, the Chief Coroner has written to local coroners asking them to make families of those who have died of the condition aware that it may be inherited, and encouraging them to contact either the British Heart Foundation, Cardiac Risk in the Young, or their general practitioner for testing and counselling.

Hepatitis

Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) overall deaths and (b) age-standardised deaths from viral hepatitis there have been in (i) England and (ii) each parliamentary constituency in each year since 1997.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated May 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) overall deaths and (b) age-standardised deaths from viral hepatitis there have been in (i) England and (ii) each parliamentary constituency, in each year since 1997.
	Table 1 provides the number of deaths and the age-standardised mortality rate where the underlying cause of death was a viral hepatitis in England for the years 1997 to 2012 (the latest year available).
	Table 2 provides the number of deaths where the underlying cause of death was viral hepatitis in each parliamentary constituency for four-year periods from 1997 to 2012 (the latest year available). Figures have been presented for four-year periods, rather than for individual years, because of the very small numbers of deaths in each constituency in each year.
	Age standardised mortality rates for viral hepatitis by parliamentary constituency have not been provided. This information is not readily available and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.
	A copy of table 2 has been placed in the Library of the House.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of deaths and age-standardised mortality rate where the underlying cause of death was viral hepatitis, England, deaths registered in each year from 1997 to 20121,2,3,4 
			  Deaths Rate 
			 1997 131 0.3 
		
	
	
		
			 1998 152 0.3 
			 1999 155 0.3 
			 2000 174 0.3 
			 2001 178 0.3 
			 2002 148 0.3 
			 2003 193 0.3 
			 2004 179 0.3 
			 2005 181 0.3 
			 2006 190 0.3 
			 2007 205 0.4 
			 2008 201 0.4 
			 2009 238 0.4 
			 2010 212 0.4 
			 2011 216 0.4 
			 2012 222 0.4 
			 1 Deaths were defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes B15 to B19 for deaths registered from 2001 on. Deaths registered between 1997 and 2000 were defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) code 070. 2 Age-standardised rates per 100,000 population, standardised to the 1976 European Standard Population (ESP). Age-standardised rates are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. For more information on ESP, see the ONS website: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/health-and-life-events/revised-european-standard-population-2013--2013-esp-/index.html 3 Deaths of non-residents are excluded. 4 Figures are based on deaths registered rather than deaths occurring in each calendar year. Further information on registration delays for a range of causes can be found on the ONS website: www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/health-and-life-events/impact-of-registration-delays-on-mortality-statistics/index.html 5 Boundaries as of February 2014.

Hepatitis

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the implementation plan for the elimination of hepatitis C will be published.

Jane Ellison: On 28 April 2014 the Department of Health published ‘Living Well for Longer: National Support for Local Action to Reduce Premature Avoidable Mortality’, a copy of which has been placed in the Library. This document sets out what Public Health England, NHS England, the Department and others will do at a national level towards meeting the Secretary of State’s ambition to reduce premature mortality in five key areas, including liver disease. Hepatitis C is identified as one of the main contributory factors for the increasing rates of liver disease in England.

Infant Mortality

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of the data on levels of child mortality in the UK published by the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation.

Daniel Poulter: We have no reason to question the accuracy of the data from the Global Burden of Disease study. Any limitations of the estimates made and methodology used are clearly set out in the published article.
	The findings reflect other studies which show that the United Kingdom child mortality rate continues to fall, but not as much as in comparable European countries.

Liver Diseases

Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) overall deaths and (b) age-standardised deaths from liver disease there have been in (i) England and (ii) each parliamentary constituency in each year since 1997.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker, dated May 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) overall deaths and (b) age-standardised deaths from liver disease there have been in (i) England and (ii) each parliamentary constituency, in each year since 1997.
	Table 1 provides the number of deaths and the age-standardised mortality rate where the underlying cause of death was a liver disease in England for the years 1997 to 2012 (the latest year available).
	Table 2 provides the number of deaths where the underlying cause of death was liver disease in each parliamentary constituency for the years 1997 to 2012 (the latest year available).
	A copy of table 2 has been placed in the Library of the House.
	Age standardised mortality rates for liver disease, for each year from 1997 by parliamentary constituency have not been provided. This information is not readily available and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of deaths and age-standardised mortality rate where the underlying cause of death was a liver disease, England, deaths registered in each year from 1997 to 20121, 2, 3, 4 
			  Deaths Rate 
			 1997 4,237 8.1 
			 1998 4,594 8.7 
			 1999 4,723 9.0 
			 2000 4,828 9.1 
			 2001 5,685 10.6 
			 2002 5,957 11.0 
			 2003 6,292 11.6 
			 2004 6,320 11.5 
			 2005 6,421 11.6 
			 2006 6,798 12.2 
			 2007 6,893 12.2 
			 2008 6,947 12.1 
			 2009 6,782 11.7 
			 2010 6,984 11.8 
			 2011 7,197 12.0 
			 2012 6,922 11.2 
			 1 Deaths were defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes K70 to K76 for deaths registered from 2001 on. Deaths registered between 1997 and 2000 were defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes 570 to 573. 2 Age-standardised rates per 100,000 population, standardised to the 1976 European Standard Population (ESP). Age-standardised rates are used to allow comparison between populations which may contain different proportions of people of different ages. For more information on ESP, see the ONS website: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/health-and-life-events/revised-european-standard-population-2013--2013-esp-/index.html 3 Deaths of non-residents are excluded. 4 Figures are based on deaths registered rather than deaths occurring in each calendar year. Further information on registration delays for a range of causes can be found on the ONS website: www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/user-guidance/health-and-life-events/impact-of-registration-delays-on-mortality-statistics/index.html

Lyme Disease

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many incidents of Lyme disease have been diagnosed in humans in the last three years.

Jane Ellison: There were 959 laboratory confirmed cases of Lyme disease in England and Wales in 2011. The number of positive tests in 2012 was 998, and in 2013 1,200, although these data have not yet been disaggregated to exclude repeat tests on the same patients. Most cases of Lyme disease are diagnosed clinically by general practitioners and the numbers are not recorded, but there are probably around 3,000 cases of clinically apparent disease each year in the United Kingdom. The disease occurs over the whole of the country, but is more prevalent in some areas including the New Forest, Thetford, the Lake District and Scottish Highlands. Approximately 20% of cases confirmed by laboratory testing were acquired abroad. Lyme disease is considerably more common in parts of the United States of America and Northern and Central Europe than in the UK, and tourists to rural areas are at risk.

Medical Treatments: Lasers

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have received NHS laser treatment to remove scars and marks on their thighs and stomach in the last year.

Daniel Poulter: This information is not available in the format requested as it is not possible to identify laser procedures to remove marks from the stomach or thighs with the current coding definitions.
	In the following table, we have provided the number of finished consultant episodes (FCEs)1 for patients with a primary diagnosis2 of a type of scar condition to the skin who have undergone a laser removal procedure3 to the anterior trunk or leg for 2012-13.
	It should be noted that these data should not be described as a count of people as the same person may have been admitted on one or more occasion.
	
		
			  Laser removal lesion of skin from anterior trunk or leg 
			 2012-13 24 
			 Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector. Notes: 1 A finished consultant episode (FCE) is a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year. 2 The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. 3 The number of episodes where the procedure (or intervention) was recorded in any of the 24 (12 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and four prior to 2002-03) procedure fields in an HES record. A record is only included once in each count, even if the procedure is recorded in more than one procedure field of the record. Note that more procedures are carried out than episodes with a main or secondary procedure. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Mental Health Services

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure that resources for mental health services meet the requirements of both adults and children.

Norman Lamb: Mental health and well-being, for both adults and children, is a priority for this Government. Our overarching goal is to ensure that mental health has equal priority with physical health, and that everyone who needs it has timely access to the best available treatment. We have enshrined in law the equal status of mental and physical health in the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
	The Mandate to NHS England makes clear that ‘everyone who needs it should have timely access to evidence based services’. This will involve extending and ensuring more open access to the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme, in particular for children and young people, and for those out of work.
	We are also committed to introducing access and/or waiting time standards for mental health. The revised mandate asks NHS England to develop and evaluate a range of costed options to implement access and waiting standards for mental health services starting from April 2015, with a phased introduction depending on affordability.
	We will hold the national health service to account for the quality of services and outcomes for mental health patients through the NHS Outcomes Framework. Improvements for people with mental health problems will also be a crucial element of success across the framework as a whole.
	Our action plan, ‘Closing the Gap’, which was launched in January 2014, sets our priorities for action and progress in mental health services over the next couple of years, including actions supporting commissioners in allocating resources.
	We are setting up a new, national Mental Health Intelligence Network to provide comprehensive, up-to- date information about mental health and well-being, mental health problems and what the most pressing needs are in each area—which will support commissioning of services.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 27 March 2014, Official Report, column 364W, on mental health services, when the guidance and Choice Framework which he referred to will be published.

Norman Lamb: The Department published the NHS Choice Framework 2014 on 1 April 2014. A copy has been placed in the Library.
	The Department has been working with NHS England and other partners and stakeholders to develop supporting guidance for the national health service. A consultation on this will commence shortly and final guidance will be published in the summer.
	The Department and NHS England will continue to work with partners and stakeholders to ensure that the extended rights to choice in mental health are fully embedded by 2015 as set out in the NHS mandate.

NHS England

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that redundancies and constraints on spending in NHS England do not adversely affect the quality of services provided;
	(2)  what the cost is of redundancies made by NHS England since January 2013; and what proportion of total expenditure that figure represents;
	(3)  what recent discussions he has had with senior management of NHS England about redundancies.

Daniel Poulter: The Secretary of State for Health meets regularly with NHS England to discuss a wide variety of issues. The Department is clear on the need to ensure that redundancy payments are made only in circumstances where it is appropriate to do so and has been working with NHS England to ensure that payments are tightly controlled, whilst meeting contractual obligations.
	Redundancies are subject to rigorous scrutiny and challenge before being approved. Additionally, any individual redundancy compensation payment in excess of £100,000 also requires departmental approval. Where redundancies do occur, NHS England ensures that these are formally subject to national NHS provisions to claw back any redundancy payment received where an individual then goes on to be re-employed within the national health service, further ensuring better value for the taxpayer.
	NHS England takes seriously its responsibilities to ensure that redundancy is a last resort and has implemented a system to seek to re-deploy any staff affected by such change to retain knowledge, skills and capability within the organisation, where at all possible.
	NHS England has a responsibility for ensuring that maximum value for money for taxpayers is delivered, while seeking to improve health outcomes for patients through effective commissioning arrangements. As a direct employer of 6,000 people, NHS England has a responsibility to continually improve the way it delivers both commissioning and the provision of the services for which it is directly accountable, which includes the regular review of its work force arrangements.
	NHS England has advised that its redundancy costs for 2012-13 were £54,000, which represented 0.1% of total expenditure. For 2013-14 the costs were £1,017,000, which represented 0.003% of total expenditure.

NHS England

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide a breakdown of the transition costs in NHS England's January finance report.

Daniel Poulter: NHS England’s Financial Performance Report, which was included in the papers for its January board meeting, gave a planned reserves/transition costs spend for 2013-14 of £110,600,000 in a table showing running costs at November 2013. NHS England has provided a breakdown shown in the following table.
	
		
			  £ 
			 Transition-Estates Void Costs 35,000,000 
		
	
	
		
			 Transition-Primary Care Services Restructuring 35,000,000 
			 Corporate Reserves and Contingency 40,600,000 
			 Total 110,600,000 
		
	
	The forecast figure of £91,000,000 for reserves/transition costs shown in the report was arrived at due to an anticipated underspend against the primary care services restructuring budget, based on forecast information from business plans for the project.

Prostate Cancer

Paul Uppal: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on the applicability of the end-of-life criteria to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence's appraisal of abiraterone acetate for the treatment of metastatic hormone relapsed prostate cancer not previously treated with chemotherapy.

Norman Lamb: Since January 2013, the Department has received four questions from hon. Members, including his own, regarding the applicability of end-of-life criteria in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence's appraisal of abiraterone (Zytiga) for the treatment of metastatic hormone relapsed prostate cancer not previously treated with chemotherapy.
	In addition, we have received one letter from an hon. Member regarding this particular appraisal more generally.

Prostate Cancer

Paul Uppal: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what figures he holds on the life expectancy of men with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer.

Jane Ellison: The Government’s mandate to NHS England sets out an ambition to make England one of the most successful countries in Europe at preventing premature deaths from all cancers, including prostate cancer.
	Cancer indicators in the NHS outcomes framework and the public health outcomes framework will help NHS England to assess progress in improving cancer survival and mortality for men with prostate cancer.
	Data related to men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer are not collected to permit the calculation of a reliable figure for average life expectancy.
	However, Cancer Research UK has estimated that men with advanced, incurable prostate cancer treated in trials or under drug access schemes at the Royal Marsden hospital survived on average 41 months, compared to between 13 and 16 months 10 years ago.

Radiotherapy

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  when NHS England began its review into the future of stereotactic radiosurgery; and when it plans to complete the review;
	(2)  with reference to section 2 of the guidance issued by Monitor on the Commissioning of Radiosurgery Services on 4 April 2014, if he will request that NHS England reinstates the commissioning of stereotactic radiotherapy to the level before 1 April 2013 while it conducts its review into the future use of this treatment;
	(3)  if he will publish (a) a list of all stakeholders who have so far been consulted by NHS England as part of its review into stereotactic radiosurgery and (b) the responses from those stakeholders.

Jane Ellison: All existing contracts for stereotactic radiotherapy services were transferred to NHS England on 1 April 2013 and it continues to commission against these contracts, as previously.
	NHS England commenced the review of stereotactic radiosurgery in August 2013 and expects a final report to be considered at its specialised commissioning oversight group, post a public consultation period, in October 2014.
	NHS England will consult with the public, patients and professionals and take account of those views when taking a final decision. A summary of the responses received will be included when publishing the final report post the consultation period.

School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has allocated to the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme for the 2014-15 financial year.

Daniel Poulter: The Department has allocated a budget of £40 million to fund the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme for the 2014-15 financial year.

School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which local authorities have withdrawn from the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme to date.

Daniel Poulter: The Department is not aware of any local authorities withdrawing from the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme to date.

Self-harm: East Midlands

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of levels of self-harm in (a) Ashfield constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) the East Midlands in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: The Department has made no estimate of the levels of self-harm in the above named areas.
	Information on the numbers of finished admission episodes (FAEs) with a cause code of self-harm and numbers of accident and emergency (A&E) attendances (excluding planned attendances) with a patient group of deliberate self-harm for Ashfield constituency for 2009-10 to 2012-13, Nottinghamshire County or Nottingham City Primary Care Trust (PCT) and East Midlands Strategic Health Authority (SHA) for 2008-09 to 2012-13 where available, is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Finished Admission Episodes 
			 Patients resident in 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Ashfield Constituency — 177 175 187 172 
			 Nottingham City PCT 691 780 967 808 706 
			 Nottinghamshire County Teaching PCT 929 1,020 1,123 1,126 1,032 
			 East Midlands SHA 10,036 9,833 10,599 9,225 8,611 
		
	
	
		
			  A&E Attendances 
			 Patients resident in 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Ashfield Constituency — 212 161 227 181 
			 Nottingham City PCT 895 880 1,271 1,501 1,472 
			 Nottinghamshire County Teaching PCT 2,288 1,340 1,459 1,777 1,534 
			 East Midlands SHA 12,122 12,849 12,939 14,828 13,076 
			 Notes: 1. Data Quality—HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and PCTs in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. 2. An FAE is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. 3. Cause code is a supplementary code that indicates the nature of any external cause of injury, poisoning or other adverse effects. Only the first external cause code which is coded within the episode is counted in HES. 4. An A&E attendance is a record for every patient that attends an A&E department, including a major A&E department, single speciality A&E departments, walk-in centres and minor injuries units. Any one patient can have multiple attendances, which may be in the same or different time period, for the same or different condition. An attendance can be split into whether the attendance was either a new or a follow-up attendance, using the ‘Attendance Category’ data field. 5. Patient group is a code indicating the reason for the A&E episode. Group 30 indicates those attending because of deliberate self-harm. 6. Parliamentary constituency of residence is the parliamentary constituency containing the patient’s normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another parliamentary constituency for treatment. This field is only available from 2009-10 onwards. 7. SHA/PCT of residence is the SHA or PCT containing the patient’s normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another SHA/PCT for treatment. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social care Information Centre (HSCIC)

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will meet the hon. Member for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland to discuss recent developments in South Tees NHS Foundation Trust.

Daniel Poulter: The hon. Member has had these issues debated in the House on more than one occasion, most recently at a Westminster Hall debate on 5 November 2013. He has also had several meetings with Ministers.
	The national health service (NHS) regulator, Monitor, is continuing to investigate the South Tees NHS Foundation Trust and the results of its investigation will be published in due course.

Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 28 April 2014, Official Report, column 471W, on Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review, 
	(1)  what fees were paid to King's College for hosting the Review team;
	(2)  if he will provide a further breakdown of each item of expenditure under each of the budget headings provided; if he will publish receipts for expenditure incurred; what the agreed budget was in advance of the Review; and what locations were travelled to as part of the Review.

Jane Ellison: A final breakdown of expenditure will be made public when complete on the Review’s webpage:
	www.kcl.ac.uk/health/packaging-review.aspx
	There was no agreed budget in advance of the Review but an estimate of £177,000 was made for planning purposes. Sir Cyril had control of his own budget, as outlined in the terms of reference, and expenditure was passed to the Department and approved in the normal way.
	Sir Cyril travelled to Australia in March 2014, and attended meetings in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne. Further details of those meetings are available on the Review’s webpage.

Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish in full the economic analysis on price and illicit trade analysis conducted as part of the Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review.

Jane Ellison: The Department understands that Section 5 and Annex C of Sir Cyril's report constitute the full and final economic analysis on price and illicit trade analysis conducted as part of the Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review.

Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who the members were of Sir Cyril Chantler's Review team working as part of the Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review; and what the cost was of commissioning expert advice from (a) Dr Yanzhong Wang and (b) Professor Catherine Pope as part of this review.

Jane Ellison: The members of Sir Cyril's team are named, and their roles noted in the acknowledgements on page 9 of Sir Cyril's report. The costs of commissioning expert advice from Dr Wang and Professor Pope were £12,000 (plus VAT) and £3,000 (plus VAT) respectively.

Strokes

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to raise public awareness of transient ischaemic attacks (TIAs) and of the need to seek immediate treatment for TIAs; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: There are no plans for any specific marketing activity around raising public awareness of transient ischaemic attacks (TIAs). However, Public Health England continues to run the highly impactful Act FAST stroke awareness campaign that covers very similar signs with a message to call 999 if these signs are witnessed. Two new television executions ran in March 2014 with plans to run them again later in the current financial year.
	NHS England produced a resource for clinical commissioning groups (CCG) to support them in setting and delivering on a level of ambition to reduce premature mortality. The resource included information on high-impact interventions that CCGs could consider commissioning to reduce premature mortality. One of these is to increase the proportion of patients with TIA treated within 24 hours from 71% to 100%.
	The resource is available here:
	www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/sop/red-prem-mort/

Tobacco: EU Law

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what cross-departmental Government scrutiny will take place of the forthcoming Implementing and Delegated Acts of the EU Tobacco Products Directive.

Jane Ellison: During the negotiations on the revised Tobacco Products Directive, the Government sought to ensure that any delegation of powers to the European Commission, to propose further rules, was limited, appropriate and well defined. The Government's proposed negotiating position on any Implementing and Delegated Acts put forward by the Commission will be subject to the normal cross-Government clearance and scrutiny procedures.

HOME DEPARTMENT

A47

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date the speed camera at Thorney Toll on the A47 was re-activated; and how many motorists have been detected as travelling in excess of the 60 mph speed limit at Thorney Toll since that date.

Damian Green: The Home Office does not hold this information. The decision to use speed cameras is an operational matter for the police.

Arrest Warrants: Northern Ireland

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in England and Wales have been arrested following the issue of a warrant by the Police Service of Northern Ireland in each year since 2010.

Damian Green: Arrest warrants issued by the Police Service of Northern Ireland are a devolved matter and the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive.

Asylum: Scotland

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brent Central of 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 411W on asylum, what the (a) gender and (b) age of each applicant represented in the table in Scotland was; and whether each such applicant had (i) family and (ii) dependants in Scotland.

James Brokenshire: Data specific to part (a) of the hon. Member’s request can be found in the following table.
	
		
			 Region/Country Band Female Male All 
			 Scotland Less than 2 years 64 133 197 
			 Scotland More than 2 years 30 35 65 
			 Scotland More than 4 years 22 51 73 
			 Scotland More than 6 years 2 12 14 
			 Scotland All 121 231 349 
		
	
	We are unable to provide data for part (b) of the hon. Member’s request for reasons of data protection.

Asylum: Syria

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) asylum seekers and (b) refugees from Syria have applied for leave to remain since the start of the Syrian conflict; and how many such people have been granted leave to remain.

James Brokenshire: The published available figures relate only to asylum seekers.
	The latest published Home Office data show that between 1 April 2011 and 31 December 2013 there were 3,796 applications for asylum from Syrian nationals (including main applicants and their dependants) in the UK. During the same period, 2,507 Syrian nationals and dependants were granted leave to remain in the UK, including asylum, humanitarian protection or discretionary leave. These grant decisions do not all necessarily relate to applications made in the same period. In addition, given the need to give each asylum claim careful consideration on its merits, not all the asylum applications made during that period will have received a decision during that time.
	Eurostat data based on provisional management information show that between 1 April 2011 and 28 February 2014 there were 4,105 applications for asylum from Syrian nationals (including main applicants and their dependants) in the UK. Eurostat data on grants of asylum are only available annually. There are some definitional differences between National Statistics published by the Home Office on a quarterly basis and monthly figures published by Eurostat.

Asylum: Syria

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average length of time is taken for asylum seekers and refugees from Syria to have an initial interview.

James Brokenshire: Between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2013, the average length of time taken for asylum seekers and refugees from Syria to have an initial interview was 28 days from initial claim.

Asylum: Syria

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the total number of refugees and asylum seekers from Syria resident in the UK.

James Brokenshire: While published statistics provide data on the number of Syrian’s who have applied for asylum in the UK (4,714 between 2001 and 2013), how many have been granted refugee status (2,182) or refused (2,065) and how many have been removed (305 between 2004 and 2013), it is not possible to confirm the total number of refugees and asylum seekers from Syria resident in the UK.

Care Homes: Nutrition

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will discuss with hospital trusts and care home providers allowing family members to feed relatives who are being cared for in public and private care institutions.

Daniel Poulter: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Department of Health.
	The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), does not have any plans to discuss with hospital trusts and care home providers allowing family members to feed relatives who are being cared for in public and private care institutions.
	It is for health and social care providers to develop local nutrition and hydration policies and there are a number of best practice resources and guidelines available to help providers do this.
	Nursing staff understand the importance of proper nutrition and will assess patients for their ability to swallow safely. From this they can made judgments about who is best to help a person to eat and drink.
	The National Patient Safety Agency and the Royal College of Nursing published a series of factsheets in 2009, setting out the 20 key characteristics of good nutritional care in health care environments. Fact sheet number 2, “An environment conducive to people enjoying their meals and being able to safely consume their food and drinks is maintained”, advised that mealtimes need the right person at the right time available to assist at mealtimes; this could include specialist therapy staff, relatives, carers or volunteers.

Demonstrations: Greater London

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of policing demonstrations and parades in London.

Damian Green: The policing of demonstrations and parades in London is an operational matter for the Metropolitan police and the City of London police.

Local Safeguarding Children Boards

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what financial contributions police services across England and Wales make to Local Safeguarding Children Boards.

Damian Green: Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) play a crucial role in multi-agency child protection arrangements. Decisions by individual police forces to financially contribute to LSCBs are an operational matter and the Department does not hold this information.

Metropolitan Police

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to increase trust in the Metropolitan police.

Damian Green: The majority of police officers serving in London and elsewhere do their jobs well, serving their communities with dedication and professionalism. We are building on this by:
	Delivering the first-ever Code of Ethics, which is due to be published shortly by the College of Policing. The code sets out clearly the high standards of behaviour expected from all police officers and staff of all ranks;
	Establishing, through the College of Policing, a set of national registers of chief officer reward packages, gifts and hospitality and business interests including second jobs. The college is also producing a national register of "struck-off" officers to record those dismissed for misconduct, ensuring that those individuals are not re-employed by the police;
	Legislating for a new offence of police corruption, supplementing the existing offence of misconduct in public office and focusing clearly on those who hold police powers, as an amendment to the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill already before Parliament;
	Strengthening the Independent Police Complaints Commission so that it will have responsibility for dealing with all serious and sensitive cases involving the police. HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary has also been commissioned to look specifically at the anti-corruption capability of police forces, including professional standards departments;
	Advertising now for Direct Entry to the police this autumn at Superintendent level, which will bring a fresh perspective and approach and will open up policing culture; and
	Introducing a comprehensive package of reform to stop and search which will contribute to a significant reduction in the overall use of the powers, better and more intelligence-led stop-and-search, and improved stop-to-arrest ratios.

Police Service of Northern Ireland

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officers have been seconded to the Police Service of Northern Ireland from police forces in England and Wales in each year since 2010.

Damian Green: The Home Office does not hold this information centrally.

Police: Information

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  who owns data on police information notices issued by police services in England and Wales;
	(2)  how many police information notices were issued in England and Wales, by constabulary area, in each of the last five years; and how many such notices have been revoked.

Damian Green: Data on police information notices issued by police services in England and Wales are not collected centrally and are owned by the individual police force that issued the notice.

Police: Information

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance is issued by (a) her Department, (b) ACPO and (c) the College of Policing to ensure consistency of practice in the issuing of police information notices by police services.

Damian Green: Any decision to review or update police guidance on police information notices is an operational matter for the College of Policing. The College of Policing will shortly be undertaking a full review and update of the guidance on investigating stalking to incorporate it into Authorised Professional Practice, which will include making sure that the guidance on the use of police information notices is reviewed.

Prisoners: Crimes of Violence

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of shame/violence intervention for violent prisoners.

Jeremy Wright: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.
	An assessment was written in September 2007 by Jasmine Scott, Trainee Forensic Psychologist, et al. in the form of a paper entitled ‘An evaluation of the Shame Violence Intervention at HMP Wandsworth’. On receipt of this assessment, the Deputy Director of Custody for Greater London, Mr Nicholas Pascoe commissioned Ms Toni Mason, Lead Psychologist for Greater London, to consider this research. Following is a short summary of her comments.
	The research findings suggested that those Shame Violence Intervention (SVI) group members interviewed for the purposes of the research, reported positive effects of SVI which included fewer incidences of violence, increased problem solving, listening, communication, and perspective taking skills, and the ability to vent frustrations and to practice skills in a ‘realistic’ setting. It was however also noted that the research highlighted a number of less positive issues associated with the intervention.
	These included: no structured programme manual or learning aims of each session being provided as part of the intervention; limited selection criteria for group members and no format to deal with diversity issues at selection; lack of clarity regarding the theory underpinning behaviour change; achievement being measured by attendance and not by behaviour change; no paper trail available that would satisfy audit processes; issues of security-there being no clear indication of how incidents/information would be reported to prison staff and concerns that some sessions became ‘heated’; the identification of a likely informal 'rule' in the group that no one should be violent on the wing to ensure that SVI continued and was seen to work, suggesting the possibility that this rule was potentially more powerful than skills learnt, (this could be argued to especially be true of a group likely to use violent behaviours instrumentally); and diversity issues not being addressed, with the observation by the researchers that ‘success’ or length of stay on the group often appeared to depend on how well group members ‘fitted in’.
	With reference to the research design itself, the positive effects of SVI reported above had not been substantiated rigorously or indeed sufficiently. Results were gained from self report, semi-structured interviews developed by the researchers for the purpose of this research, with no psychometric testing or other corroborative information (such as staff interviews, history sheets or adjudication records) being used in support of claims of the positive effects of SVI. In addition, no control group was used to assess the extent to which factors such as OBP attendance affected outcomes attributed to the positive effects reported. It was also of concern that despite SVI having been running for several years at the time of the report being written, the research cohort consisted of only 9 offenders and of those, only group members who had attended at least 5-10 sessions were included (this is despite the initial claim that ‘de-selection’ of group members was not an issue as any number of sessions of SVI would provide positive outcomes).
	Therefore, considering the significant issues with the SVI which are highlighted by the research, that the research concurred with a number of the findings of the PSO4350/Effective Regimes Interventions panel which chose not to support the original SVI application and that the existence of any positive effect(s) of SVI identified by the research cannot be substantiated due to the limitations of the research methodology, it was concluded that the ‘independent’ evidence provided did not provide sufficient cause to re-evaluate the decision made to cease SVI in Greater London prisons.

Riot Control Weapons

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if she will place in the Library a copy of the advice and business case she has received on the use of water cannon in mainland UK;
	(2)  when she plans to make a decision on the request to authorise water cannon for use by the police in England and Wales.

Damian Green: The Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), is considering the police request for water cannon to be authorised for use in England and Wales. She will announce her decision in due course and lay the relevant information in the House Library.

JUSTICE

CAFCASS

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what advice he has received from the UK Statistics Authority on the required rate of return of Children and Families Court Advisory and Support Service satisfaction surveys for younger children between the ages of five and eight before a reliable satisfaction figure may be arrived at;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to improve the rate of return of Children and Families Court Advisory and Support Service satisfaction surveys by children between the ages of five and eight.

Simon Hughes: CAFCASS does not carry out satisfaction surveys with the children it works with. It has other child-friendly ways of gaining feedback from children, which does include a feedback form. It has different versions of the form for children and young people. One encourages young people to write out their feedback to CAFCASS in response to various questions, while the feedback form for younger children asks them to circle the feelings and emotions they have about CAFCASS. These are therefore qualitative rather than quantitative. This feedback is collected and acted on at a local level rather than a national one. Complaints are monitored at a national level but addressed at the local level.
	CAFCASS does not provide a return to the UK Statistics Authority; however it has published anonymised comments from feedback forms as part of its annual reports to draw out their direct work with children.
	CAFCASS commissioned the Family Justice Young People’s Board to review the means by which CAFCASS encourages feedback from the children and young people it works with. This review resulted in four recommendations which CAFCASS has taken forward including ‘feedback trees’ and changes to the feedback forms.

Courts: Interpreters

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse was of interpretation services provided to the (a) magistrates courts and (b) Crown court in England and Wales in each of the last three years for which information is available.

Shailesh Vara: The Department does not hold centrally all of the information that has been requested. In order to provide the information we would be required to obtain a number of large reports from individual locations. This could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.

Courts: Telephone Services

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 396W, on courts, how many calls were made to higher-rate telephone numbers for (a) magistrates' courts, (b) county courts and (c) the county court bulk centre in Northampton in each year since 2009; what the average duration was of calls to the higher-rate telephone numbers in each case in the most recent period for which figures are available; how much revenue was generated from such calls; which individual numbers are used for more than one court; and how many courts are covered by each of these numbers.

Shailesh Vara: Information on volumes and durations for calls to higher-rate telephone numbers for magistrates courts, county courts and the county court bulk centre in Northampton in each year since 2009 is not systematically collected by the service providers, and to obtain it would incur disproportionate costs.
	Between November 2013 to March 2014 the percentage of higher-rate calls dropped significantly from 41% to 30% with the increasing use of 0300 numbers. This figure is set to drop even further as 19 higher-rate numbers to the county court bulk centre are currently being replaced by 0300 numbers.
	During this period 137,763 calls to higher-rate numbers were answered at the county court bulk centre with an average duration of four minutes 14 seconds. This figure represents 35% of all calls with the remainder being 0300 numbers.
	The Department has received no revenue from higher- rate telephone numbers for the period under review.
	The following individual numbers are used for more than one court:
	0844 892 4000 is used by Basildon, Bury St Edmonds, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Colchester, Ipswich, Kings Lyn, Norwich, Peterborough, Southend county courts, and by Basildon, Chelmsford, Colchester, Harlow, Southend magistrates courts.
	0844 892 0550 is used by Bedford, Luton, Hertford, St Albans, Watford county courts.
	0845 300 4239 is used by Aylesbury, Banbury, Bicester, East Berkshire (Bracknell), East Berkshire (Maidenhead), East Berkshire (Slough), High Wycombe, Milton Keynes, Oxford and South Oxfordshire, Reading, West Berkshire (Newbury) magistrates courts.
	0845 200 2078 is used by Chester, South Cheshire (Crewe), Liverpool and Knowsley, Macclesfield, Runcorn (Halton), Sefton, St Helens, Warrington, Wirral magistrates courts.
	0845 601 0485 is used by Harrogate, Northallerton, Shipton, York magistrates courts.
	0845 310 0575 is used by Cambridge, Peterborough magistrates courts.
	The following magistrates courts have higher-rate numbers which are not shared:
	Leamington Spa (0845 521 2300)
	Nottingham (0845 408 3500)
	Pursuant to the answer of 10 April 2014 (191689), 19 higher-rate numbers to the county court bulk centre in Northampton are in the process of being replaced by 0300 numbers. The higher-rate number for Central London Combined Court Centre has been discontinued. Taking into account these further reductions in higher-rate numbers, the percentage fall in higher-rate numbers since 2009 is 79% compared with the 55% previously stated.
	Magistrates courts and county courts use a total of 10 higher-rate numbers, sharing them for queries about fines, family matters, etc. Twenty one of the magistrates courts using higher-rate numbers offer alternative 0300 numbers.
	As stated in previous answers to parliamentary questions, the Department's approach is not to use higher-rate numbers and instead, wherever possible, to assign 0300 numbers, for which the tariff is similar to calling an 01 or 02 (geographic) number, whether the caller is using a fixed line or a mobile phone—see:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm131120/text/131120w0001.htm#131120113000070
	and
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130322/text/130322w0001.htm#13032267000050

Crimes of Violence: Sentencing

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will invite the Sentencing Council to consult and report on the adequacy of current sentences available for killing with one punch.

Jeremy Wright: Manslaughter has a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. While sentence lengths for manslaughter have increased by almost 50% since 2008 there remains clear public concern about the sentences imposed in so called “one punch” manslaughter cases.
	Clarification of the sentencing of these difficult cases would assist the courts and be helpful to the public. The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. Friend the Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling), therefore wrote to Lord Justice Treacy, the Chair of the Sentencing Council on 8 May 2014, to make a formal request that the Council gives consideration to producing guidance on the sentencing of these cases.

Dangerous Driving: Convictions

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were convicted of causing death by (a) careless and (b) dangerous driving in the last year for which figures are available; and what the average sentence was for each offence.

Jeremy Wright: Severe maximum penalties, of 14 years’ imprisonment, are available for those who cause death through dangerous driving or under the influence of drink or drugs and statistics show that the overwhelming majority of those convicted for these offences receive lengthy custodial sentences. The maximum penalty for causing death by careless driving is 5 years’ imprisonment and for causing death by disqualified, unlicensed or uninsured driving is two years’ imprisonment. We are keeping the law in this area under review. If any further changes are needed, we will bring forward proposals.
	The Secretary of State for Justice made an announcement on 6 May about our plans to strengthen the law in relation to disqualified drivers who cause death or serious injury; increasing the maximum sentence for causing death by disqualified driving to 10 years and introducing a new offence of causing serious injury by disqualified driving, with a maximum penalty of 4 years.
	The number of offenders found guilty and sentenced to an immediate custody at all courts and the average custodial sentence length (months) for 'careless' and 'dangerous' driving in England and Wales from 2008 to 2012 (latest available data) can be viewed in the table.
	Court proceedings data for 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
	
		
			 Offenders found guilty and sentenced to an immediate custody at all courts and the average custodial sentence length (months)1 for 'careless' and 'dangerous' driving, England and Wales, 2008-122, 3, 4 
			 Statute Offence Year Found guilty4 Immediate custody Average custodial sentence length (months) 
			 Road Traffic Act 1988 as amended by Road Traffic Act 1991 and Criminal Justice Act 2003, s.1 Causing death by dangerous driving 2008 221 206 48.8 
			   2009 225 218 44.2 
			   2010 154 140 49.1 
			   2011 114 110 48.7 
			   2012 116 111 49.5 
			       
			       
			 Road Traffic Act 1988 added by Road Traffic Act 1991 and amended by Criminal Justice Act 2003, s.3a Causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs 2008 46 45 46.6 
			   2009 35 33 51.9 
			   2010 41 40 45.5 
			   2011 35 35 52.3 
			   2012 23 21 52.1 
			       
			       
			 Road Traffic Act 1988 as amended by Road Safety Act 2006, s.2b Causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving 2008 4 - - 
			   2009 81 3 14.6 
			   2010 238 45 15.4 
			   2011 235 46 15.3 
			   2012 221 59 13.7 
			 “-” = Nil 1 Excludes life and indeterminate sentences. 2 The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 3 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 4 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will commission research on the effect of levels of functional illiteracy on electoral registration rates.

Greg Clark: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
	Both the paper forms and the new online registration channel to be used under Individual Electoral Registration have been designed to meet a wide range of accessibility needs. The Government have no current plans to commission such research, but the Electoral Commission is currently aiming to publish its assessment of registration rates under individual electoral registration in July 2016.

Employment Tribunals Service

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to his Department has been of establishing the new system for the remission of employment tribunal fees to date.

Shailesh Vara: The capital investment made by HM Courts and Tribunals Service in respect of IT systems to support the processing of fee receipts and remission applications across the employment tribunals system was £4.4 million.
	It is not possible to disaggregate the cost of establishing new (and revising existing) IT systems to handle remission applications in the employment tribunals system from that work in relation to fees handling systems. The figure provided is, therefore, a combined total.

Employment Tribunals Service

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how much has been received by HM Courts and Tribunals Service in payment of employment tribunal fees since 29 July 2013;
	(2)  how many (a) single and (b) multiple claims were received by employment tribunals between 1 January and 31 March 2014.
	(3)  what the total value of all grants of remission of employment tribunal fees has been since 29 July 2013.

Shailesh Vara: I am answering these questions together.
	The number of claims received by employment tribunals is published by the Ministry of Justice as Official Statistics (quarterly and annually) on the Justice website. Data in respect of the period January to March 2014 are scheduled to be published on 12 June 2014, following the usual quality assurance work that takes place prior to formal release. Under Official Statistics protocols, data will not be released before that point.
	The most recent such statistical publication (covering the period up to the end of December 2013) is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-october-to-december-2013
	and the future release schedule is set out at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/statistics#publication-schedule
	Financial information relating to fees and remissions in the employment tribunals system will be published by HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) in its Annual Report and Accounts. The Annual Report and Accounts is scheduled to be published in July 2014 on the Ministry of Justice website and will include information about the value of granted remissions applications and how much HMCTS has received in payments of the fees.

Employment Tribunals Service

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for employment tribunal fee remission have been (a) received, (b) granted and (c) refused since 29 July 2013.

Shailesh Vara: It is in everyone's interest to avoid drawn out disputes which emotionally damage workers and financially damage businesses. That is why we are encouraging quicker, simpler and cheaper alternatives like mediation and conciliation.
	It is not fair for the taxpayer to foot the entire £74 million bill for people to escalate workplace disputes to a tribunal, and it is not unreasonable to expect people who can afford to do so, to make a contribution.
	Fee waivers (remissions) are available for those who genuinely cannot afford to pay the fees. These are permitted based on means tests and are intended to support the most vulnerable people in society.
	Employment tribunal fees were introduced on 29 July 2013. HM Court & Tribunals Service is currently developing the management information reporting tools to produce statistical data on remissions applications it processes.
	Provisional management information now generated (but which is currently undergoing additional necessary quality assurance testing) indicates that, for the period 29 July to 31 December 2013:
	a total of 2,500 paper applications were received from individuals, or groups of individuals, in respect of an employment tribunal fee levied; and
	of those, judged against the set criteria, 600 were granted, and 1,800 were rejected.
	These provisional data have been rounded to the nearest 100.

Family Courts

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to improve the openness and transparency of the proceedings and accountability of Family Court decisions.

Simon Hughes: The Government recognise the need for greater openness in the family justice system. The challenge is to open the system up to greater scrutiny while protecting those involved especially the welfare of children. Last year, the President of the Family Division issued practice guidance in relation to committal of individuals found in contempt of court to ensure that these proceedings should be held in open court. In January this year, the President issued guidance aimed at increasing the number of judgments in family proceedings which are published. We are grateful to the President for his work in this area.
	The guidance is available at the following link:
	http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/Resources/JCO/Documents/Guidance/transparency-in-the-family-courts-jan2014.pdf

Fines

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to identify the amount of court costs (a) imposed and (b) collected from within the total imposition and collection of all court financial impositions.

Shailesh Vara: I understand that the office of the hon. Member asked for information about employment tribunal costs to be included in my answer to this question.
	Data on costs awards made by employment tribunals are published annually as Official Statistics. Data for the financial year 2012-13 (the latest data available) can be found as part of the statistical release for tribunals published in September 2013:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2013 (see in particular Table E.12).
	Parties awarded costs are responsible for initiating enforcement proceedings in the event of non-payment. Data on any enforcement proceedings initiated in respect of employment tribunal costs awards are not collated centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	In relation to civil courts, no central record exists of the total amount of costs awarded. Nor is there a central record of the level of satisfaction of costs awards made.

Ford Prison

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many absconders there were from Ford open prison in 2013-14.

Jeremy Wright: The number of absconds from HMP Ford during 2012-13 were the lowest on record. Abscond figures for 2013-14 are due to be published on 31 July 2014 as part of the Prison Performance Digest.
	Figures for the number of absconds, by prison, since 1995 are provided in the Prison Digest contained in the prison and probation trusts performance statistics. This can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225234/prison-performance-digest-12-13.xls

Judges: Housing

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 30 January 2014, Official Report, columns 649-50W on judges: housing, when he expects the review of the spend on judges' lodging to be completed.

Simon Hughes: We expect the review of spend on judges' lodgings to conclude before the summer.

Magistrates

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the total number of sittings was by magistrates who sat more than 70 half days in the last year;
	(2)  what the (a) mean and (b) median number is of half-day sittings at magistrates courts in the last year;
	(3)  what the average number of half-day sittings in the Youth Court by members of the Youth Court Bench was in the last year.

Shailesh Vara: The Department does not keep this information centrally and it could be collected only at a disproportionate cost.

Offenders: Foreign Nationals

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of defendants being held in custody pending trial are foreign nationals.

Jeremy Wright: Information on the remand population is published quarterly and the latest available data are as at 31 March 2014 and can be found in Table 1.6 of the Prison Population spreadsheet Q1 2014 via the following weblink:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-october-december-2013-and-annual

Prison Sentences

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders were bailed under an electronic curfew and went on to receive a custodial sentence in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jeremy Wright: Information on bail and remand collected centrally by the Ministry of Justice and held on the court proceedings database does not record whether conditions (including the use of electronic monitoring) were attached to bail. To answer this question would require a data matching exercise between data held by the electronic monitoring contractors and sentencing data held by the Ministry of Justice, which could be done only at disproportionate cost.

Prisoners

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners were on (a) entry, (b) basic, (c) standard and (d) enhanced status in each prison on 1 May 2014.

Jeremy Wright: Figures for 2013-14 will be available after the publication of NOMS annual performance results and management information on 31 July 2014 on the Gov.uk website:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/prison-and-probation-trusts-performance-statistics
	The figures for 2014-15 will be available 12 months later.

Prisoners: Repatriation

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners currently serving custodial sentences from EU member states are eligible for repatriation under the EU Prisoner Transfer Agreement

Jeremy Wright: We estimate that 473 prisoners are eligible to be considered for transfer under the EUPTA as at 31 March 2014, and we are working with the Home Office to obtain the necessary deportation orders to enable transfer.
	This figure is calculated on the basis of the number of prisoners from EU member states who have implemented the EUPTA, meet the criteria to be automatically considered for deportation, and have at least six months left to serve on their sentence (which is required by the EUPTA). We have not included Poland (315 prisoners) in these figures. Poland has implemented the EUPTA but has derogation from accepting compulsory transfers until December 2016. Ten member states have yet to implement the agreement but are expected to do so by December 2014.
	The Prisoner Transfer process is just one mechanism for removing Foreign National Offenders (FNOs). When transfers take a considerable time it can become more efficient to remove shorter-sentenced prisoners under the Early Removal Scheme (ERS). The number of FNOs deported under this mechanism has increased under this Government. In 2013, we removed nearly 2,000 FNOs under ERS and under the Tariff Expired Removal Scheme (TERS), which we introduced in May 2012, we have removed over 240 FNOs to date.
	Whereas this Government have begun to reduce the foreign national population in prison since 2010, between 1997 and 2010, the number of foreign nationals in our prisons more than doubled.

Prisons: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to tackle illicit trade in prescription tranquilisers in prisons.

Jeremy Wright: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) deploys a comprehensive range of measures to reduce the availability of drugs in prisons, including targeted searching, drug education, and other interventions. Prisoners are also subject to random and targeted mandatory drug tests, which include a test for the misuse of benzodiazepines. Prisoners found with prohibited items face swift and robust punishment. This can include having days added to their custody, being transferred to a different prison and losing privileges.
	NOMS is not complacent about the potential misuse of prescription medication in prisons, and prison governors work closely with health care providers to ensure that relevant information is shared and that medication is safely and appropriately administered.
	The published National Partnership Agreement between NOMS, NHS England and Public Health England:
	www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/about/noms/work-with-partners/national-partnership-agreement-commissioning-delivery-healthcare-prisons2013.pdf
	has a commitment to review the level and choice of prescription medications within prisons and for the organisations to work together with professional bodies to promote changes in prescribing practice and tackle abuse of medications.

Prisons: Employment

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what cap exists on the level of income a prisoner can earn inside jail.

Jeremy Wright: Other than centrally-prescribed minimum pay rates, governors have responsibility for setting rates of pay for their establishment, which should reflect regime priorities. Upper rates are not set centrally. NOMS Prisoners' Pay policy is set out in Prison Service Order 4460, a copy of which is held in the House of Commons Library.

Prisons: Mobile Phones

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what discussions he has had with mobile telephone operators on operators terminating accounts shown to be illegally active within the HM prison estate.

Jeremy Wright: On 5 March 2014, together with the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Staffordshire Moorlands (Karen Bradley), I met with representatives from the major mobile phone network operators as part of a new Government-industry working group to discuss ways to tackle illicit mobile phone use in prisons. Since that meeting, the National Offender Management Service is continuing to work with the networks to further explore options for disabling mobile phones proven to be operating in prisons.

Probation

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the unit cost per offender supervised by (a) youth offending teams and (b) the Probation Service was in each year since 2010.

Jeremy Wright: The Youth Justice Board for England and Wales (YJB) does not collect information on the unit cost per offender from Youth Offending Teams (YOTs).
	YOTs are primarily funded by the local authority and a number of statutory partner agencies, including the police, probation, health authorities and, where relevant, the Welsh Assembly Government, as well as the Youth Justice Board. Overall funding data are available in the latest published statistics which can be found at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/youth-justice-statistics
	Probation unit cost input indicators are published on an annual basis by the Ministry of Justice. These were first published on 25 October 2012 in respect of 2011-12. Costs for 2012-13, the latest available, were published on 31 October 2013.
	These are published as part of the prison and probation trusts performance statistics through the following page of the Gov.uk website:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/prison-and-probation-trusts-performance-statistics

Probation

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether any approved bidders for community rehabilitation companies have (a) been convicted of a criminal offence relating to the conduct of business and (b) committed an act of grave misconduct in the last five years; and what process would be followed should such offences occur.

Jeremy Wright: Final bids to run the community rehabilitation companies (CRCs) will be rigorously assessed against robust quality, legal, commercial and financial criteria. In the pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ), bidders were required to declare that they had no convictions in relation to criminal offences relating to the conduct of their business or profession and acts of grave misconduct. As set out in the invitation to negotiate, bidders are required to notify the Department of any changes to the position set out in their declarations or anything that may affect their continued participation in the competition. The Department reserves the right to undertake a full reassessment and, if grounds for rejection exist, exclude the bidder from further participation in the competition.
	MOJ has also undertaken extensive due diligence of bidders on a range of matters, including legal compliance issues. Consequently, we have a robust and diverse market and are confident that the bidders who passed the first stage of the competition—the PQQ—are credible organisations.

Probation: South West

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how long it took to merge the Avon and Somerset probation trusts.

Jeremy Wright: Avon and Somerset probation trust, which was established on 1 April 2010, replaced the Avon and Somerset Probation Board, which had been created on 1 April 2001 following the merger of the two separate probation committees for Avon and for Somerset.

Public Defenders

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the decision was made to embark on an expansion of the Public Defender Service advocates.

Simon Hughes: The decision to expand the Public Defender Service was taken shortly before the advert for advocates was published on 20 January 2014.

Registration of Births, Deaths, Marriages and Civil Partnerships

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many births were registered later than 42 days in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Caron Walker
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Justice how many births were registered later than 42 days in England and Wales in each of the last five years [197838].
	Figures for live births have been compiled from birth registration data. The latest year for which figures are available is 2012. The table below shows the number and percentage of live births registered more than 42 days after the birth occurred and the total number of live births for England and Wales, 2008-2012.
	
		
			 Live births registered later than 42 days after the birth, 2008-12, England and Wales 
			  2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Live births with a registration period greater than 42 days      
			 Number 19,968 17,376 17,808 25,120 24,319 
			 Percentage 2.8 2.5 2.5 3.5 3.3 
			       
			 Total live births      
			 Number 708,711 706,248 723,165 723,913 729,674

RSPCA

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answers of 18 March 2014, Official Report, column 638, on Freedom of Information Act, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to designate the RSPCA as a public authority for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Hughes: The Government currently have no plans to extend the Freedom of Information Act to the RSPCA. However, we are considering ways in which the Act can be extended further to enhance transparency.

Serco

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answers of 28 February 2014, Official Report, columns 556-57W, on Serco, what liability his Department has for termination payments to Serco for its surrender of the contract for running community payback in London; and how much his Department will have to pay to Serco for its surrender of that contract.

Jeremy Wright: I refer the right hon. Member to the response given to him on 28 February 2014, Official Report, columns 556-57W, for PQ 187896, PQ 187897, PQ 187898 and PQ 187894, which can be found in Hansard under the following link:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140228/text/140228w0003.htm

Television: Licensing

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Tooting of 3 April 2014, Official Report, column 754W, on sentencing, how many women were committed to prison for fine default related to non-payment of the television licence fee in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011 and (e) 2012; and how many of those women had children who were taken into care as a result of their imprisonment.

Simon Hughes: No published information is available. The information in the table is taken from a live case management system. As such, it is subject to change and is not checked to the level of official statistics. No information is available in respect of children taken into care where the imprisonment of a parent is a contributory factor.
	HM Prison Service will be completing the Basic Custody Screening Tool (BCST) for every prisoner who enters custody within 72 hours of reception once the planned Community Rehabilitation Companies have been established. The BCST has specific questions relating to family circumstances, including whether the prisoner has children, whether the prisoner is the main carer for their children and if social services are involved with the family. This will allow for consistent collection of information on the family circumstances of prisoners.
	
		
			 Women received into prison for non payment of a fine given for TV licence evasion, 2008-12, England and Wales 
			  2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Using TV without a licence 16 19 17 38 26 
			 Data Sources and Quality: These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

TRANSPORT

Brighton

Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: The Department for Transport is a federated organisation comprising DFT (Central), the headquarters functions responsible mainly for policy issues, and five executive agencies responsible for the delivery of various services.
	DFT Central has no current plans to relocate staff or offices to Brighton. The Department for Transport (including our Executive agencies) will consider opportunities for relocation as they arise, for example, through departmental reorganisation and reviews of estates requirements.

Cambrian Railway Line

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects an hourly rail service to commence between Birmingham and Aberystwyth.

Stephen Hammond: The train service between Shrewsbury and Aberystwyth is funded and specified by the Welsh Government. They have announced the two-hourly service will be enhanced by four extra journeys from May 2015 for an experimental period of three years. There are no UK Government plans to extend these extra services to Birmingham as the half-hourly frequency between Shrewsbury and Birmingham is considered sufficient to meet passenger demand.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions officials in his Department have had with High Speed UK about alternatives to High Speed 2.

Robert Goodwill: We are not aware of any request from High Speed UK for a discussion with officials in the Department engaged on HS2, nor of any such discussions having taken place. We are, however, aware that High Speed UK has responded to consultations on issues related to HS2.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average speed of travel of a Pendolino train was on the west coast main line between (a) Euston and Birmingham, Curzon Street and (b) Euston and Handsacre in Staffordshire; and what the average speed of a train on the HS2 line is expected to be on each route.

Robert Goodwill: The average journey time of a Pendolino between Euston and Birmingham city centre (New Street) is 1 hour 21 minutes. As set out in the Strategic Case for HS2 (October 2013), the average journey time of an HS2 train between Euston and Birmingham city centre (Curzon Street) will be 49 minutes–a saving of 32 minutes.
	The maximum line speed for a Pendolino travelling on the west coast main line is 125mph. HS2 is designed for a top speed of 250mph. Plans envisage services running at up to 225mph, which is becoming the standard capability for new high-speed trains.
	There is no station for Handsacre on either the existing network or the HS2 network. The nearest relevant station is Crewe, for which comparative journey times are 1 hour 30 minutes for current services and 55 minutes by HS2 services–a saving of 35 minutes.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance on the procurement process is available to companies wishing to bid for work on the High Speed 2 project; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: HS2 Ltd is undertaking a national market engagement exercise to ensure that businesses can comment on the HS2 Outline Procurement Strategy. Businesses are encouraged to share their views on HS2’s approach to procurement via a HS2 Market Engagement Survey at:
	www.hs2.bravosolutions.co.uk
	By registering, businesses will automatically receive relevant updates from HS2 Ltd as they engage with the market. Already, over 700 businesses have registered, of which, approximately 50% are indirect (tier 2/tier 3) suppliers.
	The findings from the market engagement exercise will be shared with the market at the next Supply Chain conference in the autumn.
	In addition, HS2 Ltd is developing the following mechanisms:
	Website and Supplier Guide:
	HS2 Ltd encourages businesses to regularly visit its website at:
	www.hs2.org.uk
	to access further information on the programme and stay up to date on the latest news and events. HS2 Ltd is developing the website to help businesses understand how HS2 will undertake its procurement. The website will provide information on future contract opportunities, policies and a ‘Supplier Guide’.
	Business Networking Portal:
	HS2 Ltd will promote the use of an online business networking portal which will signpost businesses to supply chain opportunities. This will be launched at the next Supply Chain conference in the autumn.
	Meet the Contractor Events:
	HS2 Ltd’s direct suppliers will be required to participate in annual events that promote future supply chain opportunities to a wide range of businesses including small and medium-size enterprises.

Highways Agency

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what civil service restrictions will be removed should the Highways Agency be moved to a GoCO.

Robert Goodwill: The Government intend to turn the Highways Agency (HA) into a Government-owned Strategic Highways Company (SHC), as confirmed in the response to consultation published on 30th April. As announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury in June 2013, the new company will operate with guaranteed multi-year funding settlements and have the flexibility to move funds between years.
	As a company, outside of the civil service but inside the public sector, the SHC will have more autonomy over its internal governance arrangements and delivery processes so that it can respond to business needs more effectively.
	The Government are continuing to work through the details of their relationship with the SHC to provide the necessary commercial freedom to boost delivery and improve efficiency, whilst ensuring value for money for the taxpayer.
	The rights of existing HA staff will be protected in accordance with TUPE principles.

Large Goods Vehicles: Noise

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research his Department has undertaken into (a) the safety effectiveness of voice warnings on freight vehicles reversing, (b) the extent of noise pollution arising from such warnings and (c) the potential benefits of introducing visually triggered automatic systems for giving warnings.

Stephen Hammond: The Department has undertaken no recent research on voice warnings on reversing freight vehicles or on the benefits of visually triggered automatic systems.

Large Goods Vehicles: Northern Ireland

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of the goods vehicle levy in Northern Ireland.

Robert Goodwill: The levy is supported by a majority of hauliers in Northern Ireland, all of whom pay it alongside their vehicle excise duty. Hauliers from Ireland must also pay before they use roads in Northern Ireland. A typical large HGV from Ireland visiting Northern Ireland twice a day, as would be the case for a round trip, would effectively pay only £1.28 per visit if it had purchased an annual levy. Smaller vehicles pay less, and those under 12 tonnes pay nothing. These represent small amounts compared to the running cost of a UK HGV of £80,000 to £100,000 per year, and much less than the tolls a typical Northern Ireland HGV would face doing a round trip to Dublin at around £8. Parliament has already debated the exempting of some border roads in Northern Ireland, totalling around 7 miles. These exemptions are a practical measure meaning that vehicles entering Northern Ireland for a short distance do not have to pay the levy, and exempting them simplifies enforcement.

Railway Stations: Access

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what criteria he used to select which stations would receive funding under the Access for All scheme from 2015 to 2019.

Stephen Hammond: The rail industry was asked to nominate stations for Access for All at the end of 2013 and 278 stations were put forward. These were assessed using the same criteria that have been used since the programme was launched in 2006.
	Stations were selected based on their annual footfall figures (using data from the Office of Rail Regulation), weighted by the incidence of disability in the area (using census data). We also took into account the preferences of the train operating companies, local factors such as proximity to a hospital and the availability of any third party funding. A number of stations were also selected to ensure a fair geographical spread across the country. Stations that already had step free routes, or which were due to be upgraded as part of other programmes, were not considered for funding.

Railway Stations: Access

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which stations in each region (a) applied for and (b) received funding under the extension of the Access for All scheme from 2015 to 2019.

Stephen Hammond: The breakdown of successful stations against nominations by region is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Region Nominated Successful 
			 London 63 12 
			 South East 49 6 
			 East 16 4 
			 West Midlands 10 2 
			 East Midlands 9 3 
			 North West 29 3 
			 North East 30 3 
			 South West 43 2 
			 Wales 14 4 
			 Scotland 15 3

River Thames: Bridges

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what written correspondence he has had with (a) the Mayor of London and (b) officials from Transport for London within the last 24 months regarding proposed river crossings east of Tower Bridge that are included within the Mayoral Transport Strategy; and how they impact on the options for the proposed Lower Thames Crossing;
	(2)  what written correspondence he has had with (a) the Mayor of London and (b) officials from Transport for London within the last 24 months regarding the tolling of proposed river crossings east of Tower Bridge that are included within the Mayoral Transport Strategy; and how that will impact on traffic levels at the Dartford Crossing;
	(3)  what meetings he has had with (a) the Mayor of London and (b) officials from Transport for London within the last 24 months regarding proposed river crossings east of Tower Bridge that are included within the Mayoral Transport Strategy; and how they impact on the options for the proposed Lower Thames Crossing;
	(4)  what meetings he has had with (a) the Mayor of London and (b) officials from Transport for London within the last 24 months regarding the tolling of proposed river crossings east of Tower Bridge that are included within the Mayoral Transport Strategy; and how that will impact on traffic levels at the Dartford Crossing.

Stephen Hammond: The Secretary of State for Transport has regular meetings with the Mayor of London at which a range of London transport measures are discussed. Other Ministers also discuss various London transport issues and projects with senior officials from Transport for London.
	The Mayor of London wrote to the then Secretary of State for Transport on 1 June 2012 to request the designation of the proposed Silvertown tunnel as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project. The Secretary of State responded on 26 June 2012 outlining her agreement to grant the request.
	On 16 July 2013, the Mayor of London wrote to me to respond to the Department’s consultation on the Lower Thames Crossing proposals.
	The Department’s review of options for a new Lower Thames Crossing included a sensitivity test to assess whether the proposed Silvertown crossing scheme would be likely to impact on the forecast flows for the existing Dartford crossing, and any potential new crossing. The conclusion of that test was that the effect was likely to be negligible. The review findings were published in May 2013 as part of consultation on the options.

Roads: Lighting

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research his Department has undertaken on the relationship between levels of street lighting and (a) road traffic accidents and (b) injuries to pedestrians.

Robert Goodwill: The Highways Agency is responsible for lighting on the strategic road network and local authorities for street lighting in their areas. It is for the authorities themselves to decide the level of service they wish their street lighting network to deliver.
	No recent research has been undertaken by the Department for Transport on the relationship between levels of street lighting and (a) road traffic accidents and (b) injuries to pedestrians. The Department does, however, collect accident data and those will include factors including whether or not the area was in darkness or lit.
	In 2006 investigations were carried out by the Highways Agency which concluded road lighting reduced the number of night-time personal accident injuries on the strategic road network by 10% on motorways and dual carriageways, and 12% on single carriageway roads. The Highways Agency has not conducted any specific research on the impact of road lighting on accidents involving pedestrians due to their low numbers on the strategic road network.
	Where the Highways Agency has undertaken the switching off of lights at midnight at certain site locations, these were subject to a detailed safety assessment. By selecting sites with a good safety record and where night-time traffic flows are low, the Highways Agency is confident there will be no adverse impact on road safety.
	This Government are providing over £4.5 billion from 2010 to 2015 to local highway authorities in England for highways maintenance, including street lighting. If a local highway authority is considering upgrading or improving their street lighting stock, the Department for Transport encourages them to consider the “Invest to Save” Guidance produced by the Association of Directors of Environment, Planning and Transport (ADEPT) which is available from the Institution of Lighting Professionals.

Roads: Yorkshire and the Humber

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Highways Agency in maintaining roads in (a) Huddersfield, (b) Kirklees and (c) Yorkshire; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: The Highways Agency business plan sets out the strategic objectives and the in-year targets to be achieved. It includes a target covering road surface condition. Each Highways Agency region contributes to those targets, including Yorkshire and the North East. The agency's performance against the targets for the financial year 2013-14 is due to be published in its annual report by summer 2014.
	The agency is unable to identify separately the contribution to business plan targets by individual constituency or local authority area.

Roads: Yorkshire and the Humber

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much central Government have spent on road infrastructure in (a) Huddersfield, (b) Kirklees and (c) Yorkshire in each of the last three years.

Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport is responsible for the strategic road network which is managed by the Highways Agency on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Mr McLoughlin). The remaining roads are the responsibility of local highway authorities under the Highways Act 1980.
	Highways Agency spending on improving road infrastructure (including smaller schemes and technology improvements) on the strategic road network in the Yorkshire and Humber area in the last three financial years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Financial year Funding for Yorkshire and Humber area (£ million) 
			 2011-12 72.413 
			 2012-13 66.658 
			 2013-14 81.982 
		
	
	The Department for Transport also provides funding to local highway authorities through integrated transport and highways maintenance block grants. This funding can be used to improve local roads that they manage, if they so wish. The following table provides this information.
	
		
			 Highways maintenance block 
			 £ million 
			  Kirklees West Yorkshire Yorkshire and Humberside 
			 March 2011 pothole 1.304 15.776 20.900 
			 2011-12 block 0 27.173 87.562 
			 2012-13 block 0 26.185 84.412 
			 2013-14 block 0 25.511 80.158 
			 2013-14 additional block 1.019 14.620 13.581 
			 2013-14 flood recovery 0.606 12.999 10.356 
			 2014-15 block 0 23.766 75.488 
			 2014-15 additional block 0.548 12.446 7.268 
		
	
	
		
			 1 Made up of the individual payments to Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield. 
		
	
	
		
			 Integrated transport block 
			 £ million 
			  Kirklees West Yorkshire Yorkshire and Humberside 
			 2011-12 block 0 121.128 147.760 
			 2012-13 block 0 19.318 43.666 
			 2013-14 block 0 19.318 43.666 
			 2014-15 block 0 27.165 61.403 
			 1 Includes top up announced in 2011 autumn statement. 
		
	
	In addition, the Department also provide capital funding for local major schemes, costing over £5 million. The figures for spend on local major road infrastructure in the last three years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 £ million 
			 Area 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 
			 Huddersfield 0 0 0 
			 Kirklees 0 0 0 
			 Yorkshire 7.2 25.6 26.8 
		
	
	Revenue funding for highway maintenance is provided through the Communities and Local Government revenue support grant (RSG). RSG is an un-hypothecated grant provided to local authorities to enable them to carry out their functions, and local authorities can choose to spend this on any services for which they have responsibility, as per local spending priorities.